Remember the Sea
by Anonymonimus
Summary: Summer's just about done and to see it off, the Pines twins decide to head over to the ocean for some beach time fun with Bill and Pacifica. But things are never quite as simple as they should be. SMUT WARNING
1. Chapter 1

Dipper opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was the dull ceiling. He was in the room in the Mystery Shack he had claimed as his own roughly five years ago. The room had once belonged to his great uncle Ford before he had disappeared into an alternative dimension for thirty years, but after his untimely reappearance seven years ago he found he preferred the new quarters he had made for himself in the basement. It was more convenient anyways, he was near his laboratory which was also the place he spent most of his time.

The room was dimly lit, scarce rays of light seeped through the curtains none of which, thankfully, landed on Dipper. He sat up with a groan and stretched. His back cricked and cracked pleasurably and he sighed as the tension left him. Summer was just about over. Sure it was early august and University wasn't scheduled to start until September but he and Mabel would soon have to leave Gravity Falls and return home.

The summer had been rather eventful. Never in his wildest dreams did Dipper ever think anything like what he had experienced could have happened to him. He began the season by becoming sex friends with a demon that had, seven years ago, tried to bring about the End of the world. At first it was just fun and games. Bill had a fascination with bothering Dipper while he tried to masturbate to porn and one thing then lead to another. He kept their status secret for as long as he could – which happened to be longer than he ever expected. The brunet had thought their relationship would never graduate to anything more at the time but he had been wrong. A little less than a month later, he and Bill began officially dating.

It was a summer romance in every sense of the term. Of course, it wouldn't die with the season – at least Dipper hoped. He was fairly certain he and Bill would continue dating for a good long while. He just wasn't sure how he would explain things to his parents. There was no way they would ever learn that Bill was a demon – Dipper and Mabel both agreed it was best to keep them out of that world – so the problem generally was the backstory they would have to give him in order to create the illusion of normalcy.

He supposed it was a problem that he could deal with later. Mabel would surely help him anyway. He could always count on his twin.

Dipper pushed himself off his bed and scratched his bare chest. He glanced at the clock and found that it was nine in the morning – he had slept in. He lazily pulled on a white shirt that had been laying on the ground for probably far too long. Once he was relatively presentable, he left his room and made his way to the kitchen. The brunet had only stepped out of his room when he began hearing the curses and shouts of his great uncles. It was almost like a morning tradition to have Ford and Grunkle Stan just yell at each other about trivial things. Though he learned to simply ignore the ruckus.

Dipper found his twin sitting at the table, poking at her bowl of cereal with a pensive look. Mabel was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice him walking into the area. He took his normal seat in front of her and probed her forehead. She snapped out of her thoughts, surprised by herself and by Dipper who had, to her, suddenly appeared out of thin air.

"Don't strain yourself." He joked.

"Good morning." She huffed.

Mabel seemed a bit bummed.

"What's up?" Dipper asked.

"It's just…summer's almost over." She mumbled.

"Yeah," Dipper sighed, "It was a good one."

"To you." Mabel complained, "You had a crazy summer, you dated a demon and had lots of crazy sex and stuff! _I_ did _nothing_!"

"That's not true." Dipper said, "You hung out a lot with Pacifica."

"Yeah but," Mabel groaned, "Dipper, I'm _nineteen_. Ever since I was a kid, I always thought my adult summers would be way more fun than when I was a kid. I thought I would have these amazing summer romances, dating dramas, and just stuff like that. But look at me! I'm still single with no suitor in sight!"

"You shouldn't be so desperate to find yourself a boyfriend." Dipper said and he hoped it sounded comforting, "You'll find one when the time is right. And being single isn't so bad!"

"I'm not saying it's bad either!" Mabel insisted, "It's just how I am! I like being in relationships! I love doing romantic things! I aspire to recreate some of my favourite scenes from my all-time favourite romance novels! I even have a list and nothing's been checked!"

"Okay, so maybe that's a bummer," Dipper conceded, "But does that mean our summer was really bad?"

"Well, yes." Mabel said, "Maybe not _just_ because I still haven't had my romantic break through, but more because we didn't really do _anything_. Think about it, you hung out with Bill, I hung out with my friends, and when we weren't doing that, we were just helping around the Mystery Shack and working."

Mabel did have a point. Dipper wouldn't go as far as to say his summer was eventless but he could see the lack of adventure it held. Most of their summers had been filled with crazy stories no one would ever believe. Naturally, those dwindled as they grew older and steadily got less involved with the supernatural. There wasn't much of a necessity if your local gnomes weren't planning another coup or a psychotic demon wasn't trying to enslave humanity and bring about the End of the world. Dare Dipper say it, their summers had gradually become _ordinary_. Uneventful. Dull.

"It's not too late to change that." Dipper said, "I mean, I'm sure we can think of something together."

"But I don't know if I want to try to recreate our childhood." Mabel said, "I've had my fill of perilous altercations with the supernatural, if you catch my drift."

"Hey, who says adventure and fun _had_ to be linked to that sort of stuff?" Dipper asked, offering a smile, "You're right, we haven't really done much of anything this summer. Sure, I had a lot of… _fun_ but it's nothing I can really share with the people back home. So how about we try having some normal adventure? Actually do what kids our age do for once."

Mabel nodded and the two began thinking. It was a bit tough what with Ford and Stan's yelling. Dipper ignored it to the best of his ability as he tried to hone on the common man's definition of normalcy. That was probably one of the most difficult things to do because he had only known madness and chaos as the norm. His great uncle had travelled and lived in an alternate dimension for thirty years, for Christ's sake! He had all but given up when his sister suddenly snapped her head up with a beaming smile.

"The beach!" She exclaimed, "We should go to the beach!"

"You mean the lake near Gravity Falls?" Dipper said, sounding unexcited.

"No! The ocean!" Mabel continued excitedly, "We have a car now! We should drive over to some place next to the sea and just have beach time fun for a week!"

"Sure, that sounds like fun." Dipper shrugged.

In truth, the concept of venturing out for a relaxing vacation by the beach didn't entice him too much. Dipper much preferred exploring a historically rich place and learning about the culture and living habits of people when travelling. Sitting by the beach and occasionally going into the water for a quick swim seemed rather boring, but he kept his mouth shut. If Mabel wanted to go to the beach and seemed excited at the prospect, then he would support and entertain her. This was more for her than it was for him anyway.

"We should also invite people!" Mabel continued giddily. "We could invite Bill."

"I'm not sure he'd want to but I can still ask." Dipper said. "Are you going to invite Candy and Grenda?"

"Nah," She said, "Candy's in San Francisco visiting family and Grenda's in Austria with her boyfriend. I'll invite Pacifica instead."

Dipper's smile faded instantly. "Really?" He asked with dismay.

It wasn't a secret that he didn't like Pacifica. The first thing he had thought of when they'd met her seven years ago was that she was some entitled, pretentious rich kid in every negative way. His opinion hadn't changed much. Pacifica did prove from time to time that she did have a heart buried deep somewhere in her, and she had developed as a person to the point of actually befriending Mabel, but Dipper still hated her. He had a hard time forgiving people when it came to his family. Pacifica had been mean to his sister, had been unjust, and rude on countless occasions when she really had the option to simply be kind and thoughtful. Mabel might have forgiven her, but he hadn't. He supposed it was because she had a bigger heart.

"Yeah, Pacifica's great!" Mabel said with a wide smile. She then winked and poked at Dipper with her elbow, "And she'll be a great _wingwoman_! Plus she's loads of fun! You'll see!"

"Un-hun…" Dipper said unconvincingly.

"So you want to go book a place to stay now?" Mabel asked, practically jumping with excitement.

"What? You want to leave now?" Dipper asked though he wasn't being serious.

"Sure! Why not? It's not like we're doing anything." Mabel said and Dipper couldn't really argue with that.

"Okay then." He said.

Though he had initially gone to the kitchen to fetch breakfast, he decided it was best not to attempt crossing the no-man's-land that had developed between the two great uncles over the course of their conversation. He followed Mabel out of the kitchen and into her room in the attic. He sat on her bed and she pulled out her own laptop, typing away quickly.

"Do you have any idea where you want to go?" Dipper asked after a long moment of silence.

"How about…" She said then paused briefly as she typed a few additional things, "Newport? It's a pretty short drive and it looks nice. They got a cool aquarium too."

"Sure." Dipper shrugged again and leaned back on the bed.

"Oh look," Mabel said and clicked on a link, "Discount beach houses!"

"Wouldn't a hotel or motel be better?" Dipper asked.

"I don't know but getting our own little house could be awesome." Mabel shrugged as she scrolled through the web page. She then stopped and clicked on an image of a house she liked, "Oh, this one's cute." She said, "It's got this sort of 1950s style…three bedrooms and two bathrooms. And it's 2000$ per week, so 500$ each if Bill and Pacifica are coming."

"That's pretty reasonable." Dipper nodded.

"Should I book it?" Mabel asked.

"I reckon we should ask the other two first before we do anything." Dipper said. "If they say no, we should look for a cheaper option."

"Good plan." Mabel said.

While she pulled out her phone, Dipper took a big sigh and called out for Bill half-heartedly. He always thought it was awkward to do so. He felt a bit like a lunatic speaking to an imaginary friend or one of the many voices in his head. Of course, it was far from that because, typically, after three times, Bill ascended or descended from a blue portal he created. And like any other time, the same thing reoccurred. Dipper didn't understand why the demon bothered keeping his phone if he didn't use it.

The portal opened on the ceiling and Bill fell on his back, promptly winding himself. He gasped and moved his mouth dumbly as he struggled to begin breathing again. Dipper and Mabel hovered around him worriedly, panicking on what to do if the demon couldn't start breathing again. However, Bill eventually did manage to swallow a big gulp of air and then started laughing hysterically.

"Whoa! I've never done that before!" He exclaimed.

"Oh my god, just be careful!" Dipper snapped in frustration.

"Calm down, Pine Tree." Bill said like he was being a buzz kill. "I'm still immortal."

"That's no excuse to keep hurting yourself." Dipper sighed in exasperation. He wasn't sure he wanted to invite the blond anymore.

"So why did you call?" Bill asked and a lecherous smile began spreading on his face.

"Beach vacation!" Mabel chimed happily, making her presence known. "You in or out?"

"Beach vacation?" Bill repeated musingly. "What does that entail?"

"We go to the beach." Dipper said bluntly. "And then we relax. You know, your normal vacation. Just next to a beach."

"Don't patronize me." Bill pouted with a glare.

"We're going to Newport." Mabel continued, "We're going to rent a house that's basically next to the sea. If you're in, you're going to have a pay a bit of the rent."

"How much?" Bill asked.

"500$." Dipper said.

"That much?" He whined, "I was going to buy this expensive thing at the BDSM store! Bucky ordered one in just for me too!"

"Bucky?" Dipper asked.

"The BDSM guy." Bill said, "He's people, Pine Tree. He _has_ a name."

"You can always buy it later." Dipper offered, eager to change the subject, "You _are_ immortal. You got all the time in the world."

"Touché." Bill grumbled, "Alright fine! On the condition I get to share a bed with Pine Tree!"

"Only if you don't fuck _every_ night and are mindful of the other tenants!" Mabel conditioned.

Bill frowned in displeasure. It seemed he wasn't ready to accept the deal.

"It's only fair." Mabel insisted, stretching out her hand to seal it, "And you're not getting a better deal."

Bill still seemed unsure whether he should capitulate.

"She doesn't mean we're not allowed to have sex." Dipper sighed, seeing all too clearly what the demon was struggling with. "She just doesn't want us to be loud and do it every night. We can do it when she and Pacifica are out doing things and we're alone."

"Oh." Bill said extendedly as though he now understood everything. He then grabbed Mabel's hand and shook it, "Then it's a deal!"

"Awesome!" Mabel beamed, "Now I'm going to call Pacifica." She turned to Dipper and asked: "Can you book the reservation for us?"

"Sure." Dipper said, "Start getting ready when you're done with the call. You too Bill."

"But I'm not calling anyone." The demon said.

"You know what I mean." Dipper said as he rolled his eyes.

He grabbed the phone and dialed the number on the web page Mabel had found. Two rings later, an old woman answered. She had a bit of a hearing problem and so Dipper found himself yelling more than talking for most of the time. He asked her three very loud times if the house was vacant for the next seven days and if she could have it ready by tomorrow. She answered yes, took down their names, and accepted the offer of cash payment upon retrieving the keys at her home. He then thanked her before hanging up.

"Good," Dipper sighed, "Mabel—"

Mabel was still chatting with Pacifica on the phone. They had long since bailed on the topic of the beach vacation in Newport and were gossiping about the many teenagers of Gravity Falls. It took him a while to get his sister's attention long enough to learn that Pacifica would indeed be tagging along. He managed to tell her what little information she would need to know and share with her friend before losing her to the conversation again.

"Say…" Bill said hovering over to Dipper, startling him in the process. He hadn't realized the demon hadn't left, "Didn't those two use to… _not_ get along?"

"Yeah, but people change." Dipper said, "I mean, just look at us. You remember how we were seven years ago?"

"Yes." Bill laughed and suddenly became very serious as he said: "I wanted to skin that stupid face of yours and shove bees down your throat."

"A-and now we're dating…" Dipper said with a nervous and forced chuckle. He hadn't really been asking for honesty from Bill in the first place.

"And I couldn't be happier." Bill sang and kissed his human's cheek.

"So did you get your luggage done?" Dipper asked, readily changing the subject.

"I don't own much of anything." Bill reminded.

"Well, I guess we'll be spending most of our time in our bathing suits anyway so it's no big deal." Dipper shrugged.

"I don't own a bathing suit." Bill admitted.

"Really?" he asked, surprised.

"Yeah." Bill said simply, "I've never been swimming before and never thought I would."

"We've got a lot to do so I guess we'll just swing by a store in Newport and buy you one there." Dipper sighed. "Now come with me, we'll shove some of your clothes into my suitcase."

"We're sharing a suitcase?" Bill gasped excitedly.

"Yes?"

"That's so romantic!" He keened happily.

"It's really not." Dipper assured.

Dipper led the way back to his room. He took out seven days' worth of clothes and his two swimming trunks which Bill disapproved of. There was really nothing wrong with them, the demon's disagreement was simply a matter of opinion. He thought Dipper should sport speedos rather than what he actually owned. To Bill, the speedo was the second best thing to come out of 1914.

The suit case was rather big and there was more than enough space to fit what little clothes Bill actually had. Most of them were suits or large sweaters. Dipper made a mental note of needing to take the demon out for some actual clothes shopping some time in the future. He also added to ask Mabel to tag along. She had a better fashion sense than he did. Regardless, there was still considerable space left within the suit case that Dipper knew wouldn't be filled up with the addition of whatever swim wear the demon selected for him. Thus he stuffed in two beach towels and his pair of flip flops before finally shutting it and hauling it next to the door.

"It's like we're a married couple." Bill said with a sort of twinkle in his eye.

"It's really not." Dipper said awkwardly.

"Don't ruin this for me." Bill said.

Dipper smirked and rolled his eyes as he fell back on his bed. "You're really excited about this aren't you?"

"Why do you say that?" Bill asked curiously.

"You're like… _beaming._ " Dipper explained, "It's just…it's something in your voice, the way you say things and the way you sound."

Bill grinned, "Well I'm not _not_ excited." He offered as he hovered over to the brunet and sat on his lap.

"That's what I'm saying." Dipper said and kissed Bill, sliding his hands up his thighs to rest on his waist.

Dipper pulled away but the demon quickly moved back in for more. The kiss that had initially been sweet had become hard and eager as Bill grinded their hips together with lazy movements. The brunet gasped and moaned in the kiss, feeling his pants gradually becoming tighter. The moment Dipper felt the blond grin against his lips, he flipped them over, pinning the demon beneath him. Only then did he see the devious and mischievous look shinning in Bill's eyes.

"I'm thinking dirty thoughts." He confessed.

"You always are." Dipper said before pressing their lips together again.

Slowly, they peeled their clothes from their bodies. Their hands roamed the other's body, feeling every muscle and curve, massaging every sensitive spot with added pressure and teasing pinches. The effect Bill had on Dipper was other worldly. Never would he have ever had sex so early in the morning but here they were and it wasn't even noon.

"Why are you smiling like that?" Bill purred.

"Because I'm happy." Dipper answered. " _You_ make me happy."

Bill blushed and buried his head in Dipper's chest out of embarrassment. "Shut up…" he grumbled.

The rest of the day passed by at a leisurely pace. Bill and Dipper spent a lot of it in bed, holding and cuddling each other in the post-coital glow. But then Mabel barged in, demanding they get their clothes on and help her make her luggage. She had a mountain of clothes she wanted to bring but couldn't and so had the emotionally painful task of having to sort through them. Thus she modelled for them and when she finished making her decision based off their commentary, they gathered beach supplies around the Mystery Shack. And that was that.

The next day, Pacifica was at the Mystery Shack early with all of her things. She stood in front of the porch with big, round shades covering her eyes, wearing expensive clothes that had likely been imported from Europe. There were also four large suit cases sitting next to her in their bedazzled glory as well as a beach umbrella, beach chair, and beach ball. Dipper had to suppress an eye roll. Sometimes, Pacifica just fit the stereotype of a rich kid too well.

"Pacifica." He greeted sternly.

"Hm." She said, hardly sparing him a glance.

It wasn't a secret even to Pacifica that Dipper hated her the same way it wasn't a secret to him that she hated him as well. Their relationship was essentially founded on mutual hatred for each other.

"Pacifica!" Mabel squealed and shoved pass Dipper to throw herself around the blonde. "Were you waiting long?"

"Like, five minutes. No biggie." She smiled sweetly.

Bill trailed out of the Mystery Shack with Dipper and Mabel's suit cases floating behind. He was rather quiet but caught Pacifica's attention all the same.

"And look, there's the demon." Pacifica said disdainfully before turning to Dipper to add: "I can't believe you're actually screwing him after all the crap he pulled seven years ago."

Pacifica, along with many others, was involved with the events that almost resulted in the End of the world at Bill's hands. She had admittedly been integral to stopping him even if it was Dipper who casted the decisive spell. Though where mostly everyone else had let go of what had happened nearly a decade ago, she hadn't. She couldn't really be blamed, much to Dipper's anger. She had been rather frightened just like everyone else. For a moment, it really had seemed like the world would end.

" _Pacifica_!" Mabel whined, "We talked about this…" and she glanced worriedly at Bill to see if he was offended, "Bill's one of the good guys now."

"Sure." Pacifica said sarcastically.

"Is she having a go at me?" Bill grinned, slowly lowering the suit cases to the ground.

"Bill, no." Dipper warned.

"Yeah, I am." Pacifica snapped, "You should be dead! We never should have let you live!"

Mabel's mouth snapped shut with the building tension. She didn't really know what to say to alleviate it and Dipper was essentially on the same boat. He just hoped the demon wouldn't snap and teleport Pacifica to an alternate world that could kill her.

"Bill…" Dipper said as the demon hovered closer to Pacifica with a mesmerized gaze.

He stopped inches away from her and Pacifica, somehow, remained unfazed by Bill's unnerving proximity. He still had a very worrying smile plastered on his face and held Pacifica's gaze like she hadn't wished him dead to his face. The demon's smile then vanished and Dipper was sure he was going to do something bad but—

"I'm sorry." Bill said and extended his hand as an apology.

"W-what…?" Pacifica stuttered.

"I'm sorry." Bill repeated.

"Why…?" She asked.

"Because I almost screwed up really badly." The demon said and dropped his gaze to the ground, like he was being haunted by something. "I'm not sorry for what I did. I like where I am now and if I hadn't done what I did back then, there's no guarantee I would have ended up here. I'm sorry for having almost screwed all that up."

"So…" Mabel sighed, "That was really unexpected."

"You're telling me." Dipper said, "That was really grown up of you, Bill."

"Yeah, well, that Jesus guy had _some_ smart things to say." Bill said and hovered away, "Don't be expecting this too often, though."

"Never in a million years." Dipper huffed.

They opened the back of the car and began piling their suitcases in. It was difficult to get everything to fit what with the unnecessary amount of things Pacifica insisted on bringing with them. The ruckus they made as they desperately tried to shove the bedazzled suitcases in the creaky vehicle while Pacifica yelled for them to be careful eventually brought Grunkle Stan to the porch. He rubbed his bleary eyes and yawned, confused by what was going on.

"What the hell are you kids doing up this early?" He grouched out.

"Oh right, we totally forgot to tell them!" Mabel laughed, "We're going to Newport for a week."

"Newport? Why?" Stan asked.

"The beach!" Dipper answered before slamming the trunk shut.

"Well you kids have fun." Stan said, "And make sure Cipher doesn't set anything on fire. Or terrorize anyone half to death."

"Excuse you!" Bill frowned, "I'm not a child!"

"Don't worry, we got him." Dipper said, shoving his boyfriend playfully.

He stood on the porch and watched them pile into the car, Dipper in the driver's seat with Bill just next to him and the two girls in the back. Pacifica glared at the demon suspiciously but kept her mouth shut. Stan waved them off as the vehicle roared to life and left the Mystery Shack's parking lot. This was definitely going to be an interesting vacation. Dipper and Mabel only prayed for a minimum of casualties.


	2. Chapter 2

They got to Newport an hour before noon. A beautiful day was just beginning. The sky was a lovely baby blue filled with fluffy, white clouds of all shapes and sizes. The four of them had spent a better portion of the drive talking about the things they saw in the sky. Obviously, Bill saw pretty messed up things in the clouds ranging to decapitated dog heads stabbed onto the bodies of would be kings and flayed people. He was quickly forbidden from playing the game.

Bill and Pacifica had actually made something akin to amends along the way. It happened when she took the initiative to apologize to him for her degree of harshness though she did then state that she still didn't trust him. Bill had laughed and said it was the smartest thing she could do considering he still was a demon. They then continued talking on more friendly terms and as great as that was, it unfortunately led to a conversation that quickly became awkward for Dipper.

"So Mabel told me all about your relationship." Pacifica had said, and Dipper had glared at her in the rear view mirror.

"How much?" Bill had asked.

"Basically everything." She had answered, "Like, you guys are sex friends."

"Wrong!" Bill had laughed.

"I didn't say that!" Mabel had objected.

"We're dating." Dipper had corrected.

"Well, see, that's what Mabel said." The blonde had continued, "But, from what she tells me, you guys have never been on a date. You only have sex and hang out."

Bill had been on the verge of saying something snarky but had stopped himself before even voicing the first sound. He had turned his gaze to Dipper as the realization of what Pacifica was saying dawned on him.

"U-um, well," Dipper had stuttered nervously, "We went to this fancy restaurant once."

Bill had smiled contently at his answer. The demon had thought that that event counted as an adequate date.

"Doesn't count." Pacifica had continued. Either she hadn't been reading the building tension properly or she didn't care, "It was a Pines family diner."

Bill then frowned and glared at Dipper accusingly. He was evidently upset that they'd never been on a date.

"You dated like, what, four people before?" Pacifica had added and Dipper had wanted nothing more than to strangle her, "You know _exactly_ what a date is and isn't."

The glare Bill had been giving him was starting to weigh on him. It had felt like it was burning into his skin and Dipper didn't know what to do to remedy the situation. Then he did the worse thing he could have possibly done.

"W-well thanks for ruining the surprise, Pacifica!" He had said with faked anger, "I was going to take him on our first date in Newport as a…surprise. But you ruined it."

Pacifica had seemed stunned by the outburst while Mabel giggled quietly in her corner, knowing better. For a moment, he had been afraid his sister would spoil his spontaneous lie, but Bill took no notice of her. He had been too excited at the prospect of finally going on a date to care about much else. Thus he had begun to babble excitedly about the things he had seen other people do on dates and what he would like to do on theirs, while Dipper mentally kicked himself in the chin.

By all means, he should have already had taken Bill on a date but the truth was he just forgot.

They drove to Newport's downtown to reach the old woman's home and make the payment as well as claim the keys. They found the place bursting with life. Thick crowds of people were walking down the sidewalk – most of them were wearing their bathing suits considering the beach was very close by. The sight of so many people seemingly enjoying the day got them eager to pull on their bathing suits and jump into the ocean as soon as possible.

The old woman's house was, thankfully, situated in front of a series of small, independent stores one of which sold bathing suits. Dipper sent Pacifica and Mabel with Bill to buy him a bathing suit, adamantly repeating that the demon wasn't allowed to purchase a speedo if they wanted the deal he and Mabel had previously agreed upon to remain intact. Lord knew he wouldn't be able to resist jumping the blond if he wore so little clothing.

Dipper walked into the old woman's house as he knocked on the door. He was taken aback by the pink décor and the many framed pictures of small, adorable animals covering the walls. They all seemed to be animals she had once owned because names were engraved on the lower part of the frame. He was contemplating the photograph of a seemingly very old dog when the woman rounded the corner and surprised him with a plate of cookies. Dipper awkwardly accepted one and made quick business of giving her the money as well as retrieving the key before she roped him into staying any longer.

By the time he came out, Pacifica, Mabel, and Bill were waiting by the car. The demon held a bag which he kept peeking into happily. He was very satisfied of his purchase and that worried Dipper. "All set?" he asked.

"Yep." Bill chirped happily.

"He's insane." Pacifica said.

"I know." Dipper sighed.

"No, I mean, he's just like your sister." Pacifica continued and he noted the wonder in her voice, "You could pick out the ugliest thing in the world and he'd still make it look amazing."

"Bucky says I have an amazing body." Bill boasted.

"Okay, I want to add a rule to this vacation." Dipper suddenly declared, "No talking about the BDSM guy."

Bill pouted but agreed to it all the same.

"What does he have against the BDSM guy?" Pacifica whispered to Mabel.

"No clue." Mabel shrugged.

They then piled into the car, wincing as they sat on their suddenly very hot seats. They had barely been gone for more than ten minutes and yet the car still felt like an oven. It was evidently gearing up to be a very hot day.

Dipper drove them to the house which was located in a more residential area. It was exactly a block away from the ocean which one could see if they peered down the road. There was also a motel called the Blue Flounder bordering the last bit of road that led to the ocean. Somehow, Mabel managed to get its wifi reception regardless of the distance.

The house as such seemed small from the outside but was much larger on the inside. It still wasn't the biggest place in the world but perfect for the four of them – regardless of Pacifica's complaints. The front door gave out on a large living area with an old TV and two couches. Further in the back of the room was a dining table where they would likely be eating the meals they had at home. The house then split into two thanks to a corridor which gave out on the kitchen, one of the bathrooms and three rooms. The second bathroom was situated between the two rooms on the right.

At that point, it was a vicious fight to see who would get which room. They all had double beds but the one in the room on the left was considerably bigger than the others and had another TV. Dipper, Mabel, and Pacifica shoved their way to it, tackling and laughing along the way. Mabel managed to push herself in before the two others with a victorious grin which quickly fell when she saw Bill already lying on the bed with a smug smile.

"Yes! Good job, Bill!" Dipper cheered and pushed into the room.

"Whoa! Hey, he cheated!" Pacifica stated, "You teleported, didn't you?"

"You know, I thought about it." Bill admitted, "But I noticed the big bathroom on the left gave out on this room. So while you three meatheads were busy fighting in the corridor, I went around."

Mabel and Pacifica ultimately took the two rooms on the right side of the house. In the end, they found it was a better arrangement considering they were further away from Dipper and Bill and so would likely not hear them screwing as loudly. Plus, they shared the bathroom that connected their rooms which meant they could easily swap products and things of the like.

"Should we go grocery shopping?" Mabel yelled from her room as she quickly unpacked.

"I kind of want to go to the beach." Pacifica yelled back.

"But it's almost noon." Mabel reminded. "I'm sort of hungry."

"There's probably a restaurant in that hotel down the street." Dipper shouted, "We can just grab something there and head to the beach after."

"Food is for the weak." Bill muttered.

"Good idea." Mabel said, "We can go grocery shopping after."

With that settled, Dipper dug through his suitcase for his swimming trunks while Bill pulled on the bathing suit he had recently bought. The brunet didn't know what to expect when he turned around but he probably shouldn't have been as aroused as he felt. Bill had bought a swim jammer with yellow streaks on the thighs. It was so skin tight that it likely wouldn't have made that big of a different had the demon decided he wanted to swim utterly naked. Dipper could practically see the detailed shape of the blonde's dick. But what the swim wear really highlighted was Bill's great ass.

"This isn't fair." Dipper groaned, tearing his gaze away, then he whispered to himself: "I don't think I can maintain this deal…"

"What? What's wrong?" Bill asked, hovering closer.

"Please stay, like, five feet away." Dipper practically begged as a dark blush spread over his face.

Bill tilted his head curiously but their conversation was cut short when the door to their room was swung open. "I need your opinions again!" Mabel stated, revealing the bathing suit she wore. It was a red bikini with white dots. The top cupped her boobs in a way that made them seem bigger and barely even covered them, whereas the bottom was small and exposed most of her butt. This to say, it was a lot more of Mabel than Dipper wanted or was ready to see. "Do I look cute and does this scream "sexy and confident" or "lonely and needy"?"

Bill whistled and grinned, "You got it going on, Shooting Star." He laughed. "You look hot!"

"I want to see!" Pacifica shouted and stumbled to their room. She basically had the same reaction as Bill, "Yeah, you look super cute."

Pacifica wore a bikini of a similar design but in solid turquoise. It was meant to show off her curve and enlarge her already big breasts. Dipper would be a liar if he said she didn't look hot.

"Ew. Stop staring at me." She said, glaring at Dipper.

"You look so beautiful." Mabel cooed excitedly. "All the guys'll be after you!"

"Ha!" She snorted, "But are they _worthy_ of someone as gorgeous and wonderful as me?"

Dipper rolled his eyes and turned away. Though he did occasionally glance back at the blonde. She was just so damn stunning it was irritating. He wished Pacifica hadn't been born with such great genes.

"Stop staring at her." Bill said dangerously low which caused Dipper to jolt in surprise and fear, "I'm getting jealous."

"Okay, okay." Dipper sighed, rubbing his face.

"I'll send her to the lava-people." He warned.

"I got it, I'm sorry." Dipper said.

Grabbing some just a couple of dollars and their beach towels, the four of them left the house and made their way to the Blue Flounder for food. Dipper, Mabel, and Pacifica ordered hot dogs and ate them as they finished their walk towards the beach. Bill watched them eat, not necessitating any food to sustain himself.

The beach was long and the sand was white. It stretched out for a dozen feet before actually reaching the ocean. The ocean was very blue and gorgeous with many waves rolling onto shore. There were a series of dark rocks on the left side, emerging from the sand in the middle of the beach and steadily stretching out into the sea. Some more rocks were scattered around the area but located far apart from one another. The beach was mostly barren, with only a few groups of people scattered along the shore with their beach umbrellas and towels, but no lifeguards. The given section was rather far away from where most people went out for swims, thus making the necessity for lifeguards void. Though the lack of people added to the charm of it. It almost felt like their own private beach.

The four of them paused for a moment, taking in the wonderful sight ahead of them. Then, together, they shouted in glee and darted towards the water. However, their glee soon turned to pain as the sand was burning hot and hurt the bottom of their feet. Thus, rather than stopping near the shore to place their towels down, they ran into the water to sooth their aching feet. Once cooled, they strolled back to the dusty, hot sand and laid down their towels.

"So I don't know how to swim." Bill stated, staring at the water with apprehension.

"Yeah, I remember." Dipper said, "I'll teach you. We just have to put on some sunscreen first."

"Pfft! Nu-un!" Bill snorted.

Dipper wasn't going to argue with Bill. If he was going to be stubborn and refuse to protect his skin from the harsh rays of the sun, then so be it. He would learn the hard way. And while it would be unpleasant for the demon, it would be funny for everyone else. So Bill wandered around in the water, kicking and splashing as the waves crashed at his feet, and Dipper, Mabel, and Pacifica covered themselves with sun lotion.

"Are you going to stay there all day?" Bill called, annoyed. "Am I going to have to go back in time to learn how to swim?"

"Calm down." Dipper groaned as he slowly made his way into the water. "It needs to sink in a bit which takes a couple of minutes."

He took Bill's hand and led him further into the water. The current was soft but there was still a gentle pull to the left that they had to resist. Dipper stopped when the water reached his belly button and was mostly sure they were in a spot where waves didn't directly crash down on them. Bill stood next to him, seemingly nervous at the amount of water he was submerged in. The brunet supposed he would feel the same way had he not known how to swim.

"Alright." Dipper said, "Now I'm not a teacher, but I'll do my best. In my opinion, the best way to start learning how to swim is to first learn how to float." He then took Bill by the arm to guide him in front of him, "Now lie on your back."

"I don't want to." Bill said stiffly.

Dipper smiled at the evident fear. It was somewhat endearing. "Don't worry, I'll hold you." He said, "I'll only let you go when I think you figured it out, okay?"

Bill glanced suspiciously at the water before looking back at his human. He took a heavy breath but did as he was told, holding onto Dipper's arm the whole time. Dipper then slipped his arms beneath Bill, to support him better.

"Okay, so you're going to take a deep breath and fill your lungs with air." Dipper said. "Stretch your arms out like a star too—good, yeah, like that!" he waited for a forming wave to pass before he let Bill try to float on his own.

The demon floated for a few seconds before sinking to the bottom of the ocean floor like a rock. Dipper had to pull him back up after a moment and Bill gasped for air as he resurfaced.

"It didn't work!" He cried out.

"We'll try again." Dipper offered.

As the Dipper continued to try to teach Bill how to swim, Pacifica and Mabel sat on their towels and watched them. Pacifica would laugh every time Bill simply sunk rather than float and re-emerged frustrated. Mabel smiled from time to time but her attention was more drawn to the group next door. It seemed to be about four guys their age and there was one she particularly liked. He had tanned skin, dark hair and wore something around his neck – she hoped it was a shark tooth.

"See something you like?" Pacifica teased.

Mabel jolted and blushed lightly. "More like _someone_." She said with a small laugh.

Pacifica glanced over the nearby group and frowned. "Which one?" she asked.

"Bright green swim trunks." Mabel said.

"The surfer dude?" Pacifica asked, turning back to Mabel with a surprised look.

Mabel grinned, "He reminds me a bit of Mermando." She admitted.

"You need to move on, Mabel." Pacifica said and fell back on her towel, slipping her arms beneath her head. "I mean, didn't that guy marry the Queen of the manatees or something?"

"Yes." Mabel said disappointedly, "But the surfer guy hasn't!"

"No." Pacifica said sternly, "I don't support this. You need to pick someone else and you need to drop the idea of a merman boyfriend. I thought the whole point of coming here was to avoid the supernatural and stuff."

"Not necessarily _avoid_ it." Mabel grumbled and glanced back at the camp regretfully. "How about the blond one?"

Pacifica didn't bother looking over to see. "Nah." She said, "How about we go out to the pier tonight and we look there?"

"Sounds like fun." Mabel smiled and fell back down on her towel as well. "Dipper and Bill'll like it too—"

"Better not to invite them." Pacifica cut in almost too quickly. "At first glance it'll look like we're out with our boyfriends and the other guys'll just look the other way. And, no offense, I absolutely don't want to be mistaken for you brother's girlfriend."

"You guys would look cute together, though." Mabel chuckled and elbowed the blonde playfully.

"Now _I'm_ offended." Pacifica stated. "He's such a spaz."

"He's not—"

"God damn it Bill, stop sinking!" Dipper snapped from where he stood.

"I can't help it!" Bill snapped back, "I'm a _demon_! Hell's trying to drag me back home!"

"Please explain to me how you can fucking float over the ground but not in the water!" Dipper growled, "Because that makes no fucking sense!"

"See what I mean?" Pacifica chuckled.

"I guess." Mabel laughed.

"I'm allowed to use magic?" Bill then gasped.

"What do you mean—oh, so _now_ you float!" Dipper sounded annoyed as much as he did exhausted.

Mabel pushed herself up slightly, leaning on her elbows to watch her brother and his boyfriend play in the waves. The smile she wore faded a bit as a sigh left her lips. She envied the relationship Dipper had with Bill. This to say, Mabel wasn't in the business of dating a demon or anything equally evil – it was just that the two got along so well even if Dipper failed to notice it. Sometimes it was like looking at two pieces of a puzzle fit together perfectly. Mabel wanted to find someone that could complete her as well as Bill completed Dipper.

"Are you going to go man hunting too?" Mabel asked, peering at her friend.

"Nope." Pacifica said, popping the "p" sound.

"Are you even looking for someone?" She then asked.

"Maybe." Pacifica said and a small smile began spreading on her face.

Mabel grinned excitedly. "What type of person are you looking for?"

Pacifica mulled the question over a bit, pursing her lips until an answer came to mind. "Someone like you." She settled on and the answer got Mabel laughing hard. "What?" the blonde continued, slightly off put by the other's reaction, "You're cute, sweet, and funny. Plus you've got the spirit of an artist and I dig that."

"Keep that up and I'll get the impression you're flirting with me!" Mabel laughed and shoved Pacifica playfully.

Pacifica smirked and dropped the subject as such, setting her gaze back on the blue horizon. Mabel watched her for a moment, a dumb smile plastered on her face before she too eventually looked ahead and admired the beauty of the ocean. The sight was so captivating, neither noticed that Dipper and Bill had disappeared from their view in favour of hiding behind the series of rocks on the left.

Dipper had been the one to drag the demon away when he couldn't stand another "accidental" grind in the waves. He'd gotten too horny to hold back anymore and he wasn't about to get out of the water and expose the tent in his trunks to not only his sister but Pacifica as well. Bill, of course, didn't seem to mind. The blond was always too happy to get down and dirty anytime, anywhere. This was no exception.

He giggled when Dipper pushed him against the wet rocks, hidden from the girls. The surface was smoothed by the constant slapping of the waves and the thin layer of algae that had steadily grown onto it. It wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world, but it was far better than some of the surfaces they had used before to fuck.

"My, oh my," Bill teased, pulling his human closer and slipping his arms around his neck, "What about the deal?"

"They don't want to hear or see us fuck and they won't." Dipper said lowly before pressing his lips against Bill's. They kissed harshly, tongues pushing and rubbing hard in the wet cavern of the demon's mouth. "The rocks hide us." Dipper said, briefly pulling away before resuming the kiss, "And the waves are too loud for us to be heard."

"You know," Bill said lustily, "I really don't care that much."

"Good." Dipper smiled, "Me neither."

They kissed again, their bodies pressed closer together that time. Dipper pressed his hands on the rock on either side of the blonde's head in order to keep them as steady as possible what with the waves pushing and pulling. The movement of the water caused their hips to grind together pleasurably though to say the ocean was the sole cause would be untrue. The two had simply lost themselves in the lust that seemingly overwhelmed them all too quickly when they got the least bit intimate.

"I can't—" Bill breathed against Dipper's abused lips.

"You can't what?" Dipper hummed mindlessly and went back for more contact.

Bill moaned as they locked lips again, the brunet biting and nibbling at his lower lip. "I need you…" Bill said once he managed to pull away again, "I need you inside me—"

Dipper smirked and quickly flipped the demon around, resting his eager hands on his hips. Bill yelped and gasped but gripped at the soft rock as he waited for the other to get to work. Dipper toyed at the hem of Bill's bathing suit as he placed soft kisses all over his back. The latter whimpered, wiggling his hips in a vain attempt to encourage Dipper to focus on the task at hand.

"You know…" Dipper hummed as his lips trailed the back of the blonde's neck, "I think you knew – no, that you were expecting this sort of reaction when you bought that bathing suit…"

Bill opened his mouth to speak but he only uttered a gasp when Dipper bit down on one of his many erogenous zones. He continued abusing it, pulling mewls and whimpers from the demon's pretty mouth while his hands began slipping downwards, gliding over the fabric of the skin tight jammers.

"Sure it covers more skin," Dipper continued lowly as his fingers trailed over the yellow streaks on Bill's thighs, "but it doesn't _hide_ much…"

"Pine Tree—" Bill whined as the other's hands got to his erection.

"It caresses your body so perfectly," Dipper continued, running his finger up and down the clothed cock's length, "that it might as well be transparent rather than black and yellow."

"D-don't tease me—" Bill begged, "Please—"

"Why?" Dipper chuckled, "Isn't that what you were doing to me?"

"I-I'll make it up to you!" Bill stuttered, glancing back.

"How?" Dipper asked curiously.

A lecherous smile spread on Bill's face, "I can hold my breath for a really, _really_ long time."

Dipper blinked but before he could react, the demon disappeared under the water. He felt fingers tug at the hem of his trunks and yank them down enough to pull out his erection. He pressed his hands against the rock again when he felt Bill's hot mouth engulf his cock and suck. A moan almost escaped Dipper's mouth but he slammed his hand over it before it could. He kept it in place as the blonde's fingers began getting more active, fondling and pleasuring the skin Bill was incapable of taking into his mouth. The pleasure was building quickly – a bit too quickly for Dipper's tastes, but he couldn't stop it. The coils built faster as he began thrusting into that hot mouth, ready to spill his seeds when, all of a sudden, Bill released him and surfaced.

"How was that?" He grinned, wiping his mouth with his hand.

"You bastard—" Dipper said and pressed the demon back against the rock.

"The only way you get to cum," Bill purred, "Is by sticking that pretty cock of yours in my ass."

"If you knew what you did to me…" Dipper sighed, flipping the demon over again.

He pulled down the wet jammers just enough to expose the demon's perfect ass and began teasing the twitching entrance with his fingers. Bill gasped and glanced back quickly, a blush heavy and evident on his face. "W-wait—" he gasped, "I don't want preparation; I just need you inside me—"

"It'll hurt more…" Dipper warned.

"You know I love it." Bill responded and pushed his ass out so it rubbed against the exposed tip of Dipper's cock, "I don't want to wait anymore."

Dipper pressed another kiss to the back of Bill's neck as he took his dick in hand and brought it to the other's hole. He pressed the tip against it, slowly pushing in and finding that the resistance he was expecting wasn't particularly great. He slipped inside of Bill easily enough and waited a moment for the blond to adjust to his size. The demon, however, wasn't in a mood to wait and started pushing back against Dipper.

"God, please move!" He moaned, "You know I won't break!"

And Dipper began doing just that. He pulled out nearly all the way before pushing his way back in. Bill threw his head back as he moaned loudly, gripping at the algae covered rock his chest was pressed against. He sounded so needy, so desperate for more and Dipper felt the same way. He wasn't sure why either of them were so turned on but it didn't matter anymore. He gripped Bill's hips tighter and began pummelling into him hard. The water slapped around them and the sounds of the waves crashing onto the shore and the rocks was deafening but Dipper could only really hear the sounds that escaped Bill.

Both of them were utterly lost to the impossibly wonderful bliss, but it was all over too soon. The coils within Dipper's stomach gave a dry squeeze and he came inside Bill with a loud groan and a shudder of the hips. Bill followed seconds after, crying out and clutching at the rocks for support the moment his legs gave out under the weight of the intense pleasure. They stayed like that for a moment, breathing heavily and completely worn out. It was hard to keep in place with the push and pull of the sea but somehow they managed.

"I'm going to want a lot more of that during this week." Bill said.

Dipper grinned. "I know." He sighed and pulled out, bringing his swim trunks back up, "But we've got to head back now."

Bill groaned and fixed his jammers back into a proper position. "Fine." He grumbled.

Dipper gave him a quick kiss and led the way back to the girls who both lied on their stomachs in an effort to tan. For a moment, the brunet thought he could pretend not having been gone the whole time but Mabel noticed them and called them out on it. She glanced back and yelled a quick "Hey!" before jumping onto her feet.

"Where did you two go?" She asked, cupping her hands to her mouth as she yelled.

Dipper blushed something terrible. He wasn't about to be honest and so opted on a lie. "W-we went to the rocks—" he answered nervously, "It's easier to help him learn how to swim when he can hold on to something that doesn't move."

"Good one." Bill said, genuinely impressed.

Mabel seemed to buy it easily enough and sat back down on her towel. Dipper let out a heavy sigh, and aside from that moment, the rest of the day rolled by smoothly without any risks of making things suddenly awkward. They stayed on the beach until sunset, by then Pacifica and Mabel had joined them in the water a couple of times but had still spent more time on the sand. Dipper had wanted to leave on more than one occasion but Bill found he rather enjoyed the sea and swimming. He particularly enjoyed being pinched by the many crabs that lurked beneath the waves.

All to say that the vacation was off to a wonderful start.


	3. Chapter 3

The sky was clear of any clouds. Various shades of blue mixed and merged with pink, orange, and red, as the sun set in the horizon. Dipper, Mabel, Bill, and Pacifica had spent another day at the beach, swimming and laughing the whole time. Unlike the previous day, the demon had to sport a shirt to cover his intense sun burn. Just as Dipper had expected, he quickly learned his lesson and as much as pain was amusing, a sun burn was not. Bill made sure to drench himself in sun screen before leaving the small house they'd rented. Now they sat on the sand side by side as the sun steadily disappeared. It had been another hot but fun day and this moment of quaintness ruined it in no way. If anything, it was refreshing to hear nothing but the waves lazily crashing onto shore rather than the yelling and laughing that had been buzzing in their ears all day.

"So what are we eating tonight?" Pacifica asked.

"We can make some hot dogs." Dipper suggested, "That doesn't that too long."

"How about we go to the pier?" Mabel suggested instead, "We can ride the rollercoasters and eat whatever food they're selling."

"But it's super greasy and fattening." Pacifica complained with a grimace.

"Eating one corn dog isn't going to ruin the shape of your body." Dipper smirked.

"Going to the pier could be fun." Bill hummed.

"I noticed that they had a slingshot yesterday." Mabel added, "Plus a bunch of other rides that make you spin and go upside down."

"Slingshot!?" Bill exclaimed excitedly and darted his eyes to Dipper.

Dipper tensed, his smile quickly turning into a frown. "No."

"Yes."

"Bill, I'm afraid of heights—" Dipper tried.

"No you're not!" Bill stated.

"I'm not getting into a machine that launches me into the sky!" Dipper exclaimed.

"Don't be such a baby!" Bill condescended.

"Yeah, Dipper." Pacifica sneered, "It's not all about you!"

"Yeah!" Bill chimed in.

"Oh my God…" Dipper groaned, slapping his hands over his face.

"So it's settled then?" Mabel asked, "We're going to the pier?"

"Yep." Pacifica grinned.

After the sunset, the group steadily made their way back home and a quick shower and change of clothes later, they were on their way to the pier. Rather than take the car, they decided to walk. The night was young and warm and walking thirty minutes rather than taking the car wasn't going to ruin it. Rather, it gave Dipper plenty of time to bargain the rides he was willing to do with Bill and convince Mabel to take over the ones he really didn't want to do. Pacifica bargained similarly but more in terms of the spinning rides which she was fairly certain she could no longer stomach – especially after the wild night she had had at the pier the day before.

"There's literally a video of a slingshot ride breaking." Dipper insisted almost desperately, "It surfaced, like, two weeks ago!"

"In France." Mabel pointed out.

"What are the odds if it happening again?" Pacifica snickered.

"See! You think that!" Dipper said, "But the next thing you know, you hop on the ride and you die!"

"You're being overdramatic." Pacifica said, rolling her eyes.

"Who wants to get on a _machine_ that _launches_ people into the sky _for fun_?" He all but snapped, "It's insane! It's stupid—and I think I just understood why Bill's so eager to go on it."

"Are you calling me insane?" Bill asked, "'Cause you're not _wrong_ …"

"Why can't you just go with Mabel?" Dipper whined and turned to his sister pleadingly, "Come on, Mabel! You love this stuff!"

"As much as I would love to, Dip," Mabel sighed with exaggerated and insincere regret, "I'll be doing something more important."

"Finding a boyfriend isn't important." Dipper said.

"That's easy for you to say, considering you already _have_ one." Mabel called out.

"I wasn't looking for him and I regret everything now." Dipper stated bluntly.

"I have feelings, you know." Bill said.

"How about you stop being a baby and you just do it?" Pacifica suggested with exasperation.

Dipper repeated what she had just said in annoyed, high pitched mumbles before snapping: "I have a _phobia_! I'm afraid!"

"How about I hold your hand the whole time?" Bill suggested with a bright smile, grabbing a hold of his human's hand.

"This is the night I die." Dipper mumbled.

"We'll be doing some rides too, right?" Mabel asked, glancing at her friend.

"Not the spinning ones." Pacifica said and her face began taking a soft shade of green at the mere thought of spinning, "I don't think I can handle it anymore…"

"But the spinning ones are the funnest!" Mabel urged. "We've got to do at least a few!"

"Yeah, Pacifica," Dipper hissed bitterly, "How about you stop being a baby and just do it?"

Pacifica pinched her lips tightly and glared at Dipper. However, she refused to let him win. "Fine." She said sticking her nose up in the air, "We'll do _some_ of the spinning ones."

Mabel cheered excitedly, hurrying her step in evident excitement.

"Like two." Pacifica then added nervously.

"Oh come on, two's not enough!" Mabel insisted with a wide grin.

"You already did, like, all of them yesterday!" Pacifica nearly whined. "How is it not enough?"

"You're being the biggest hypocrite right now." Dipper stated.

"You know what!?" Pacifica snapped at him, "The spinning rides actually make me _sick_!"

"And yet crippling fear makes me a baby." Dipper said, rolling his eyes.

"Calm down you two." Mabel budged in, "We're going to have fun no matter what!"

When they got to the down town area, the streets were bursting with life. Most of the independent stores were left open and, surprisingly, had a few clients but most people were either in bars or restaurants. The sidewalks quickly got crowded the closer they got to the pier and four people walking side by side quickly became impossible. And when they finally got to the pier, so many people clogged the walkway that Dipper and Bill nearly lost Mabel and Pacifica, and vice versa, countless times before having even purchased some tickets for rides.

"There are so many more people here than there were yesterday." Pacifica remarked when they finally stopped somewhere where they wouldn't be in everyone else's way.

"Well, aren't there supposed to be fireworks tonight?" Mabel asked.

"That would explain it." Pacifica conceded.

"So what's up?" Dipper asked, "Are we getting food now or are we going to wait after we got a few rides going?"

"Urgh." Bill groaned, "You humans and your food…"

"If we get food now, we might puke it all up later because of the rides." Mabel said pensively but suddenly beamed when she exclaimed a bit too excitedly: "But that just means we can eat _more_!"

"That's an unhealthy way to think." Pacifica commented.

"I think eating first is the better option." Dipper reckoned, "I mean, might as well eat while we still can. You're going to be sick and I'm going to throw up in fear whether or not our stomachs are full."

"Point taken." Pacifica conceded.

That was probably the first thing they've ever agreed on.

Pacifica and Dipper left to order the food at nearby food stands while Mabel and Bill went to find a table. The eating area was crowded with people. The most frustrating thing, however, was seeing one or two people occupying the bigger tables for bigger groups. Bill had nearly torn someone's head off until Mabel spotted a vacant place further back. It was situated next to a beavertail booth which perplexed the two of them.

"Do they mean… _real_ beaver tails?" Mabel asked, squinting at the menu.

"I'm going to be really disappointed if that's not the case." Bill declared.

The demon then left quickly to order one of the beaver tails. They had four different choices of toppings to accompany food and opted for the original one: cinnamon sugar. Bill then brought the beaver tail back to the table where Mabel sat and set it between the two of them. Mabel hovered closer, sniffing at it curiously before poking it.

"Are you going to taste it?" Mabel asked, and the more she stared at it, the more she felt unnerved.

"I didn't buy it to stare at it." Bill said before scooping it up and taking a big bite. Mabel watched him in awe as he chewed slowly, tasting the beaver tail. A frown then appeared on his face and he forcefully swallowed the bite he had taken. "Aww, eww!"

"What?" Mabel asked, glancing at the thing suspiciously.

"It's just fried dough!" Bill whined and dropped the thing on the table, "It's not a _real_ beaver's tail!"

Mabel then tore off a piece just to taste. A smile spread on her face instantly as she then tore another big piece to eat. "Why did you say ew?" She asked as she chewed enthusiastically, "This is amazing!"

"I wanted a _real_ beaver's tail!" he huffed and glared at the fried food bitterly, "You can have the rest."

"Awesome!" Mabel cheered and promptly devoured it.

Bill sighed and looked away, glancing regrettably back at the beavertail stand. He noticed the clerked that served him was eyeing Mabel a bit too shamelessly. The demon grinned and nudged the brunette.

"Hey." He whispered, "Try looking cute."

"Hm?" Mabel asked with her mouth full.

"Booth-of-lies McGee is checking you out." He said.

Mabel glanced over and caught the clerk's stare. He blushed and looked away hastily, immediately pretending to appear busy. Mabel swallowed the thick lump of food in her mouth and rubbed the cinnamon sugar from her mouth and cheeks.

"Oh my god, he's kind of cute." Mabel whispered loudly, worriedly looking at Bill, "Did I look unattractive?"

"I'm sure it came off as adorable to him." Bill offered with a sympathetic smile.

"Oh my god…" Mabel groaned and slammed her face on the table, "Curse this delicious treat."

"You want me to go talk to him for you?" Bill suggested, glancing back to catch the clerk take a peek at Mabel.

Mabel gave him a perplexed stare, "Why…?" she asked slowly, "This isn't like you…"

"I may or may not have my own agenda…" Bill admitted vaguely.

"You want to yell at him about not having been given an actual beaver's tail, don't you?" She asked bluntly.

"It's false advertisement!" Bill snapped defensively.

Mabel cracked a smile at that. "You're unbelievable." She said with a grin.

"What did he do?" Dipper asked as he and Pacifica got to the table with three sodas and abnormally big corn dogs. They then sat down opposite the other two.

"You know," Mabel sighed as she took her drink and corn dog from the two, "He's being himself again."

"That's not good." Dipper said and worriedly glanced around for any signs of damage. Nothing _seemed_ to be on fire…

"I'm feeling very unappreciated right now." Bill stated with a frown.

"So Pacifica," Mabel said, leaning over the table, "What do you think about the guy at the beavertail booth?"

"What's a beavertail?" Dipper asked with a grimace.

"Disappointment." Bill answered with a huff. He side eyed Dipper's corn dog and grinned. "Give me that!"

"H-hey!" Dipper complained as his food was taken away from him. "You don't even eat."

"I eat _sometimes_." Bill grinned.

He opened his mouth and inserted the corn dog into his mouth. Slowly pushing it deeper and deeper until the tip hit the back of his throat. Dipper felt his breath hitch while he watched with mesmerisation as the demon basically performed fellacio on the phallic shaped food. Bill kept his eyes on Dipper the whole time as he started bobbing his head on it, and trailing his lips along the length. Then he opened his mouth wide and ate the corn dog in one bite.

"W-wha—" Dipper stuttered snapping out of his trance, "You dick! I didn't even get any!"

"I don't mind giving you _some_." Bill purred with a lecherous grin.

Dipper blushed at the comment but gritted his teeth in frustration as he buried his face in his hands. "You don't even understand how long that line was when we left…" he groaned.

Luckily, Pacifica and Mabel hadn't really heard or seen any of the demon's display. The two were more bus discussing the clerk at the beavertail stand who would often glance for long periods of time at Mabel whenever he saw that she wasn't looking.

"He's probably Canadian and that's a big no from me." Pacifica said.

"What? Why is that a problem?" Mabel asked, "And how do you know if he's Canadian?"

"I went to Montreal on a lot of business trips with daddy," Pacifica explained, "The first time I had a beavertail was there because it's a Canadian thing. They probably hired some kid from British-Columbia who came to work abroad."

"Okay, but even if that's true," Mabel asked, "Why is he being a Canadian a problem?"

"Because no one'll believe you have a boyfriend from Canada." Pacifica explained like it was obvious, "Whenever someone who's pretending to be dating someone talks about their invented partner, they _always_ say they're from Canada to explain why they're not around."

"But it'll be true this time." Mabel argued.

"No one'll believe it." Pacifica insisted, "Trust me. I know."

"You've been in that situation?" Mabel asked skeptically. She was having a bit of a hard time hiding her annoyance.

"No but some other of my friends have." Pacifica brushed off and took a bite out of her corn dog, "Wouldn't you prefer an American anyways?"

"I don't know," Mabel huffed, "I like the idea of a boyfriend from a different country…don't you think long distance relationships are romantic?"

"I think they're a recipe for cheating and ending up broken hearted." Pacifica said bluntly, " _Now_ I'm speaking from experience."

"Well, I mean, maybe you were just unlucky?" Mabel reasoned slowly.

"Maybe but probably not." Pacifica sighed taking another bite, "I'm just trying to look out for you, Mabel. And, anyways, you'll probably get sad that you won't be able to see him all the time later on. You'll want to spend time with him, go on dates, but Canada's not two seconds away."

"I guess…" Mabel conceded with defeat.

She began munching on her corn dog in disappointment, no longer bothering to glance back at the clerk from the beavertail stand. Pacifica tried to ignore her defeated demeanour but ultimately couldn't. It wasn't what a good friend would do.

"Don't be so down." She said, "We'll find you someone. I'm sure that won't be the only other guy checking you out tonight."

They finished eating quickly enough and waited a moment longer at the table while Dipper fetched himself a new corn dog. It took a while because the line at the place they'd gotten their food earlier had grown tremendously. And in order to avoid Bill repeating the same stunt, the brunet made sure to take a big first bite as he neared the table rather than upon reaching it. Then it was a matter of short moments for Dipper to finish his greasy food and lead the way to the ticket booth.

With their tickets in hand, it was only a matter of running around and choosing rides. It was at that point that their little group separated into two with Mabel and Pacifica going one side and Bill and Dipper on the other. Bill kept defaulting to the slingshot and Dipper had to fight tooth and nail to convince him to go on something else first. And while Dipper struggled to delay the inevitable, Mabel and Pacifica waltzed around in search of men.

However, Mabel found herself frustrated. As fun as it had been the many times man-hunting had been before, this time was simply aggravating. Whenever Mabel pointed out guys she thought were her type or might have been checking her out, Pacifica shot it down. Sometimes, she wouldn't even bother to look at the man she pointed out; claiming something like he was just too boring or probably foreign. The worst part was that Pacifica didn't even look like she was trying to help Mabel out. The brunette quickly started questioning what exactly they were doing.

"Oh hey look." Pacifica said.

Mabel immediately got her hopes up, eyes darting in the direction her blonde friend was pointing. "What?" She asked looking for any hot guy.

"The ice cream shop has a couple's discount." Pacifica said, "It's half off whatever you order."

"That would be great if either of us had boyfriends." Mabel sighed, rolling her eyes.

Pacifica eyed the sign for a while and Mabel noticed how her cheeks steadily became redder. "How about we…I mean," she stuttered nervously, "We could _pretend_ we're dating to get the deal…"

"That's a bit dishonest, isn't it?" Mabel asked.

"How many people you think faked being in a relationship for half off their ice cream?" Pacifica asked bluntly. "We're in America, Mabel."

"Good point." Mabel conceded and extended her hand.

Pacifica glanced down and blushed heavily. Mabel didn't quite understand but thought it might be because it _was_ strangely hot on the pier. She supposed it was because of all the food booths cooking enormous quantities of food and the suffocating amount of people generated heat. Regardless, they walked to the ice cream shop hand in hand and waited in the short line. There were two other couples in front of them who ordered and got the discount. They only held hands and it seemed it was all couples had to do to prove they were actual couples.

"Two soft ice creams in a cone, please." Mabel grinned.

The woman behind the cash looked them over skeptically, "And are you two expecting the couple's discount?" she asked almost rudely.

"Um, yes?" Mabel said and raised their hands.

The woman didn't seem convinced and folded her arms over her chest. "How long have you been dating?"

"Tw—"

"Thr—"

The two paused and exchanged awkward glances. "Two years and ten months," Mabel then said slowly, "Which is basically three."

"Un-hun." The woman said doubtfully. "Where did you meet?"

"Gravity Falls." They both answered at the same time.

"It's this little town in the middle of nowhere." Pacifica then added.

"Okay…" The woman said, "Then you don't mind kissing to prove it?"

"W-what?" Mabel stuttered.

"I'm not asking you to French kiss." The woman assured, "Just a normal kiss. A lot of guys and girls pretend to be gay with their friends to get the discount."

"Hang on," Pacifica interjected a bit angrily, "So you don't ask these questions to a guy and a girl holding hands? Because _they_ must be dating whereas gays or lesbians dating is phooey? It's just clearly two heterosexual people trying to get half off their ice cream?"

"No," The woman said dryly, "I ask these questions to every couple who don't order something big to share _together_. The ones faking it typically order their own thing."

Pacifica and the woman squared off, making the situation rather uncomfortable. Mabel decided to break the tension by pressing a quick kiss to Pacifica's cheek effectively stunning the blonde and surprising the woman.

"Is that enough?" She asked nervously, "I'm not that big on PDA."

"Uh…yeah," The woman said, "Just a minute."

She prepared their ice cream hastily – most likely because she wanted them out of the shop as quickly as possible. Mabel was also feeling awkward about the brief altercation and had her money ready to pay the whole thing. She quickly handed the bill over, telling the woman to keep the change as she all but ran out dragging Pacifica and their ice cream.

"Geez," She sighed as they walked away, "That got a bit out of hand."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Pacifica declared as she fished through her pocket to hand over the money she owed to Mabel.

"You basically called her a homophobe." Mabel called out as she handed her, her ice cream.

"What else was I supposed to think?" Pacifica practically growled, "I call bull shit on what she said anyway. That first heterosexual couple didn't even order one big thing. They ordered two separate cones like us and didn't get grilled with questions. I was defending homosexuals."

"That's fine and I would have done the same thing, but I wasn't really getting that vibe from her." Mabel admitted, "And didn't you seem to take it a bit too personally?"

"What do you mean?" The blonde asked.

"I mean," Mabel sighed, "Like, I know if someone said something homophobic to me or around me, I would take it personally because of Dipper and Bill…but you seemed to talk as if…I don't know…"

Pacifica tensed as a brief silence fell upon them. Mabel wondered if she had gone too far. Perhaps she should have kept her mouth shut instead of speaking her mind. The last thing she wanted was to get in a fight with Pacifica on day two of their trip.

"Let's just drop it." Pacifica said quietly.

"Yeah…" Mabel sighed and followed the blonde as she led the way through the crowd.

They ate their ice cream in general silence. It might have been the best type of ice cream Mabel had ever had but the conversation she had just had left a bitter taste in her mouth that ruined what she was eating. A part of her felt like she should have apologized immediately because she had somehow been insensitive. But then the other part felt like calling Pacifica out had been the right thing to do. It was a part of their friendship. If one of them noticed the other was being stupid or senseless, they'd say something and talk it through to make each other a better person. It was something special that the two only did with each other. Lord knows hardly anyone else would be able to handle it.

And yet the feeling that Mabel had insensitively overstepped her boundaries lingered and she didn't know how to go about fixing it.

By the time they finished their ice cream, they'd reached the slingshot ride. Mabel wasn't in much of a mood to start doing rides. She'd much rather go home and sulk in her room than have fun but she wasn't about to ditch her brother at the pier. Luckily, they found Dipper wrestling Bill at the line for the slingshot. Dipper was trying to get away and the demon was trying to keep him in place to force him onto the ride.

"It's a _literal_ death trap!" Dipper insisted as he struggled out of the blonde's strong grasp.

"But I want to go on it!" Bill complained like a child, "We had a deal!"

"I take it back!" Dipper declared.

"Too late!" Bill stated, "I already did _my_ part! Now it's your turn!"

"Bill, you would have done _that_ sooner or later!" Dipper said, "And probably sooner rather than later!"

"Lovers' quarrel?" Pacifica smirked as they got closer.

"Mabel!" Dipper cried out, "Do you still have any tickets left!?"

"Yeah—"

"Please, please, _please_ just go with him!" Dipper begged. "I can't do this—I'm going to throw up—!"

"Calm down, bro." Mabel chuckled and slipped into the line, "I'll bail you out this time."

Dipper paused and, for a moment, Mabel was afraid he noticed there was something wrong and he was going to ask about it. "Oh my God, thanks so much!" He sighed happily and wiggled his way to freedom.

Mabel also let out a sigh of relief. She wasn't sure whether her twin had actually noticed her sour mood or not but she was really just glad she didn't have to talk about it. It would only make things more awkward than they were with Pacifica at the moment. There were a lot of thoughts running through her head anyways and she didn't want to talk with Dipper until she sorted things out on her own in her head.

And Dipper, as her twin, understood that completely. Mabel hadn't even given him the smallest of signs to deliver the information but she didn't have to. Dipper just knew. They were best friends; _twins_. They were connected. He'd actually had a sort of heavy feeling in his stomach for the last few minutes he had spent in absence of Mabel and seeing her had only confirmed that something had happened. Of course, he was kind enough to wait until they were alone, but more than that, to wait for Mabel to take the first steps. Dipper didn't believe much in asking the first question. If someone wanted to tell him something, they would tell him without having been badgered into it.

But that was only true most of the time.

He watched as Mabel and Bill steadily made their way to the front of the line and, eventually, in the ball that would launch them to the sky. Once they were seated in and couldn't catch glimpses of their faces from their current positions, Dipper opened his mouth.

"So is everything alright between you and Mabel?" he asked.

"Yeah," Pacifica scoffed, "Why are you asking?"

"Don't lie to me, Pacifica." Dipper sighed, "I know something's wrong."

"Then why don't you ask _her_?" She asked bitterly.

"Because she'll tell me when she's ready." He answered.

"Then if you know you're eventually going to know," Pacifica said, "What's the point in me telling you?"

"When Mabel comes to me for advice, I'll have your side of the story." Dipper said, "If she just didn't interpret something properly, I can set things straight. It's as simple as that."

The lights on the ride began glowing with flickering lights. It meant that the ball would soon launch. Dipper heard Mabel laugh loudly yelling "Oh my god!" as she grabbed Bill's hand. He let a smirk pass through his lips.

"You don't have to tell me anything, Pacifica." Dipper said calmly as he kept his eyes trained on the giant ball, "We have a mutual hate for one another and that's fine. I'm not looking to be your friend. I was asking out of consideration. You mean a lot to Mabel. So just know that if you ever make her cry, you're _really_ going to hate me."

The sparkles on the ride stopped abruptly and hardly a second later, Mabel and Bill were thrown high into the night sky. They could hear Mabel's fading scream as the ball reached its peak height before it came plummeting back down.

"Mabel, you're crushing my hand!" They heard Bill shout before the ball launched back up.

"Are you really trying to intimidate me?" Pacifica snorted.

"No, I'm just being truthful." Dipper said honestly. "I'd do terrible things for my family."

Pacifica just smiled, unthreatened and uncaring of Dipper's warning. "I'm not sharing my side of the story with you." She said, "It's none of your business."

"Suit yourself." He said, "I'm not going to pry the answers out of you."

"Good." She said.

And they watched as the ride steadily came to a halt. Strangely, there was no tension between them. Neither felt like they were acting fake when they smiled and laughed with Mabel and Bill when they got off the slingshot. Perhaps it was because of their mutually acknowledged hate.


	4. Chapter 4

**Quick message to JacksepticEyeFan:** **I've never been to Newport and likely never will. I know there's this magical thing on Google where I can look up pictures of Newport and paint a description based off that but I decided to go "eh, fuck it." So the Newport described in this story is, instead, a combination of places I've been before (ie Old Orchard Beach and Wildwoods).**

 **I'm not planning on changing that either so, yeah. This Newport is entirely fictitious.**

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The day following the night of the pier started a bit tensely. When they'd gone home the night before, Mabel had walked ahead chatting with Bill, while Dipper and Pacifica walked a few paces further back in silence. Here and there, both would make remarks on the things they passed or lame jokes but no real conversation took place. When they'd gone to bed, Mabel had been rather quiet with Pacifica, wishing her a quiet "Good night" before retreating into her room. The same mood had started the next day but settled fairly quickly when Pacifica walked into the kitchen and treated Mabel like nothing had happened the night before. It was an attempt at forgiving and literally forgetting that Mabel was too happy to go along with.

The two girls found themselves chatting and laughing again within seconds. Though Dipper was unconvinced that things were resolved on an individual and personal level, he wasn't about to object and intervene. The point of vacationing was to spend time relaxing while being happy and vocally reminding everyone of the tenseness and awkwardness of the night before would only ruin that. If things decidedly solved themselves by vehemently ignoring whatever conflict had come up, then who was he to object?

"So what are we thinking of doing today?" Pacifica asked as she spread jam on her toast. "Another day at the beach?"

"Yeah, unless you had something else in mind." Mabel answered with a shrug while pouring herself a bowl of cereal.

"Nope." Pacifica said, bringing her plate to the table.

"I was thinking we could have a barbecue tonight." Dipper said as Mabel joined them. "Any objections?"

"Sounds good to me." Mabel said.

"Same here." Pacifica said, "It just sucks we don't have beers or coolers to go with it."

"We _are_ underage." Dipper reminded.

"Yeah, but only in the United States." Pacifica pointed out, "We can legally drink basically everywhere else in the world – except, maybe, in two or three countries. And don't pretend to be a law abiding citizen! I see you drink beers all the time at the Mystery Shack!"

"Ooh!" Mabel joked.

"Whether I drink or not doesn't change that we can't legally buy alcohol." Dipper stated with a roll of the eyes, "We'd probably get kicked out of the store immediately."

"I can solve that." Bill declared.

A portal opened up beneath his chair and he fell through. Rather than closing, the bright blue hole remained and all three watched curiously, waiting for something to happen. Some five minutes later, Bill returned with a two six packs of beer and a box of eighteen Bud Light mix-a-rita cans.

"Voilà!" Bill declared, dropping his purchases on the table.

"Are those stolen?" Mabel asked skeptically.

" _No_!" Bill said, "I _bought_ them. In Canada."

"That's still illegal." Dipper sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, "You have to declare things like that at the border."

"You know, I always get complains when I try doing something nice for you." The demon frowned, "What the rest of the world doesn't know won't kill them. Probably."

"I'm fine with this." Pacifica admitted with a shrug as she tore open the box and looked over one of the cans. "And he's kind of right. Might as well enjoy."

"See?" Bill said, gesturing Pacifica, "Blondie's got the right idea!"

"We _are_ on vacation…" Mabel conceded.

"Not you too Mabel!" Dipper whined.

"You don't need to drink any of it, Pine Tree." Bill smirked, "It just means more for us."

Dipper frowned and glared at the six packs of beer in front of him. He let out a frustrated sigh and through his head back, "Alright, _fine_." He said, "Whatever, I'll have some later. Screw you guys."

"You were bound to get roped in doing something illegal sooner or later." Mabel chuckled, "You _are_ dating a demon."

Dipper rolled his eyes. He had the feeling he would be doing that a lot over the course of the week.

They finished breakfast and packed the alcoholic beverages in the refrigerator. It ended up clogging most of the space to the point where some of the mix-a-rita cans had to stay in the box in which they came so as to be able to close the machine's door. Then they pulled on their bathing suits, grabbed their beach supplies, and made their way to the ocean.

They were expecting to find empty sand with a lot of space to set their things up just like the other day. However, upon arrival, they noticed that their normally deserted beach was far more populated than it had ever been. A large banner hung from two thin sticks stabbed into the ground and it read: "Sand Castle competition". Near it was a makeshift booth with a plastic table where contestants would go to sign up. There was actually a rather long line of people waiting to write down their name and just as many more actually beginning the construction of their sand castles.

The competition also brought with it a crowd of curious onlookers with no intentions of participating. These people had set up their towels, umbrellas, and beach chairs along the shore and swam in the ocean, waiting for to see the end products of the participants. Because of all this, there was hardly anywhere for Dipper, Mabel, Pacifica, and Bill to comfortably set themselves up.

"What the hell's this?" Pacifica mumbled in annoyance as they walked on the hot, white sand. "I didn't hear anything about this."

"That's kind of cool though." Mabel said.

Dipper noticed how she kept eyeing the sign up booth. "You want to participate?" he asked.

"Only if you do it with me." Mabel said too quickly.

"What? Why?" Dipper asked, "You know I'm not artistic."

"But we're such an awesome team!" Mabel insisted. "We could crush this thing!"

Dipper sighed and glanced at the participants that had already begun sculpting their mountains of wet sand. "I don't know, Mabel." He said, "Some of these people look like professionals."

"It'll be fun!" Mabel cooed, "Come on! Let's just do it!" she turned to Bill and Pacifica, "Let's all just form a big team and go for it."

"Alright." Pacifica conceded with pretend exasperation.

"Whatever." Bill said uncaringly.

"Fine." Dipper said, "Let's just set our stuff up first."

There was a spot near the shore where they could squeeze there things in and still have a relatively satisfying amount of space. Once everything was set up, they made a b line back to the booth at which point the line had become considerably shorter. Waiting wasn't particularly long and soon they were in front of the man scribbling down the name of participants on a clipboard. He had hair evidently dyed a bright blue, wore a Hawaiian shirt with strange furry pants. His arms were covered in ominous tattoos of eyes, crescent moons, and tentacles. And yet, the man smiled brightly and greeted them energetically.

"Welcome to the SCC – Sand Castle Competition!" He said, "My name is Tad Palmer, are you interested in signing up as a participant?"

"Yes." Dipper answered, a bit taken aback by the warm reception.

"Right, then just sign your name here…" Tad said, handing them the clipboard and a pen, "Will you be participating as a group of four?"

"Yes." Dipper said again, meekly.

"Then just scribble down the names of your other team members next to yours." Tad indicated, "We'll be judging the creations at 4PM so you have up until then to make something."

"Okay." Dipper said and gave the clipboard back.

Tad looked it over quickly, pursing his lips and tapping the end of his pen against them pensively, "You're not professionals are you?"

"No." Dipper said slowly.

"Then I'll check you for the beginners' category." He said and flicked the pen on the paper. He then grabbed one of the smaller, square papers that laid on the table and handed it over, "Just put this near or on your creation when you're done so we know you're a contestant."

"Is there a prize?" Mabel asked peaking over her brother's shoulder.

"The professionals have a cash reward," Tad explained, "And the beginners have a chance to win coupons for the pier."

"Awesome!" Mabel cheered. "Let's go, guys!"

"Have fun!" Tad called and waved them away.

"That guy was a bit strange…" Pacifica mumbled.

"One might even say a _tad strange_." Bill joked and laughed a little too much at his clever pun.

They walked pass the cluster of professionals digging up large mountains of sand and went to the beginners who had smaller but still big piles. Mabel was the one to stop them at a spot she found adequate. Standing in akimbo, she let out a satisfied breath before facing Dipper, Bill, and Pacifica, ready to get things started.

"Alright, we're going to have to fetch the shovels and buckets we have." Mabel started, "Dipper, I want you to grab one of the smallest sand buckets and fill it up with sand dollars and other pretty sea shells you find on the shore. Pacifica, you're going to grab the bigger buckets and fill them up with water. Bill, you're going to grab our bigger shovel and start digging!" she then drew an x on the sand with her foot as a point of reference, "Now let's get to work!"

"Hang on," Dipper interjected, "Why do I have to grab the sea shells? And why aren't you doing anything?"

"No offense, Dipper," Mabel said, "You're too weak to do much of anything else." Bill and Pacifica both had to slap their hands over their own mouths to keep from laughing out loud, "And I'm doing the toughest job: directing! When we get a good pile going, I'll also be the artist!"

Dipper sighed in defeat and they all got to work. Dipper walked around the shore line, picking up colourful and whole seashells he knew his sister would approve of while Pacifica ran back and forth with buckets of water until there were no buckets left. Then she joined Bill and Mabel in digging up a pile of sand and wetting it with the collected water. Dipper came back much later, when his sister had already begun carving into the miniature mountain with Pacifica's help as Bill simply sat on the side, playing with seaweed he had been told to collect at some point.

Once Mabel took notice of him, Dipper was also roped into sculpting her vision. They worked tirelessly and with such a blind devotion that none of them noticed their empty stomachs growling until much later – when the sand castle was practically done. It had turned out much bigger than Dipper had expected and was also fairly decent. It didn't look terrible but it looked horrendous in comparison to what the professionals were making a few feet away. And upon glancing at their competition, he'd say their chances of winning the coupons for the pier were pretty good.

Then they left the number Tad had given them by the work they had made and went out to swim in the ocean. They played and enjoyed the sun for about three more hours before a blow horn called back the contestants as well as the people interested to see who would win. They began with the children's category and ended up rewarding all the participants with stickers and coupons of the like – it was clearly in an effort not to hurt anyone's feelings. As for the beginners, Dipper, Mabel, Bill, and Pacifica's category, only three winners were pronounced and they so happened to be amongst them.

The group decided not to stick around to see which of the professionals would take the prize money because none of them really cared enough. They returned to their towels, chairs, and beach umbrellas to enjoy what was left of the day and the warm sea. They stayed until the sun began setting again at which point the flock of people that had suddenly been invading their area were mostly gone. Mabel and Pacifica swam around in the waves, playing and splashing water at one another.

"So is this what it's like to be human?" Bill asked quietly as he watched the sun set.

"Pretty much." Dipper said and leaned back in his chair.

"I could get used to this." Bill smiled and glanced at Dipper, "I had fun."

Dipper was stunned into brief silence. There had always been some demonic or overall supernatural flare to Bill even in his human body. His eyes seemed wild and his smile, unnatural among many other things. And yet, in that very moment, there was something incredibly human to him. His eyes seemed peaceful and were without the slightest twinkle of malevolence. The soft smile that played at his lips was small, subtle, and normal. The whole of it took Dipper's breath away.

"Me too." Dipper smiled and took his demon's hand.

The brunet had the strong urge to profess his love then and there but he kept his mouth shut. It wasn't that he thought it was too soon or that the confession might ruin the moment – it was more that it was unnecessary. The moment they shared was perfect the way it was, with the laughs of Pacifica and Mabel, the sounds of the waves splashing and crashing onto shore, colouring the background. There was no point in saying "I love you". Bill probably already knew.

The day came to a peaceful end as such. The group returned to the small house they rented and had a barbecue. They drank the beer and coolers Bill had illegally retrieved from Canada and drank most of it. They were all so lost in the fun they had continuously had from the moment they set foot on the beach. And though Dipper was utterly exhausted and drowsy from the amount of alcohol he had consumed, he found himself struggling to fall asleep. It was like a part of him insisted that the day wasn't over just yet – that there was one last thing they could do.

Dipper slipped out of the bed he shared with Bill. He noted the demon was actually sleeping with his hands cradled near his face. He looked so adorable. He made his way to the window and pushed the curtains back just enough for him to see. The brunet glanced at the sky and he gasped as he saw the millions of twinkling stars so clearly in a cloudless night sky. Ideas began bumbling in his head, perhaps the feeling that the day wasn't over just yet was right.

Carefully, Dipper creeped to Bill's side of the bed and shook his gently. The demon's eyes opened in a tired flutter and he mumbled confused and drowsy words, evidently confused on why he was being awoken so late. Dipper offered him a smile as he began whispering to him. "Come on. I want to show you something."

And though the demon was tired and wanted nothing more than to return to the dreamscape, he followed his human out of the bed and into the night. Dipper snatched a pair of keys and a dry towel on the way out, careful to make as little sound as possible. He ushered Bill out the door and followed him, weary of locking it before venturing down the sidewalk. At that point, Bill was more awake.

"What are we doing?" Bill asked.

"Some more human stuff." Dipper grinned and winked.

He took Bill's hand and brought him towards the ocean. The streets were empty, the lights of nearby houses and hotel were completely shut – save for the latter's blue neon sign. There were two street lights on their way to the ocean to light their way but they seemed so unnecessary. Never had Dipper experienced such a bright night. The moon was full and shone almost as brightly as the sun – but not enough to dull the feeble light of the stars.

They stopped on the hard sand and Dipper set down the towel he had brought. He laid down on it, coaxing Bill to do the same by extending his hand towards him. The demon watched him curiously for a moment before lowering himself onto the towel and snuggling into Dipper's embrace. His head rested on his shoulder while one of his hands was place on his chest, drawing lazy circles as his eyes turned to the stars.

"We came star gazing." Bill said softly.

"Yes." Dipper answered.

"I used to do it all the time." Bill admitted, "Before I got involved with you humans. I had nothing else to do so I looked at them." He paused, "I haven't looked at them in a long time."

"It's nice." Dipper said and pulled Bill closer.

"It is." He agreed and looked at him.

They stared into their eyes for what almost felt like an eternity. The sweet moment came to an end when their lips met and then their eyes fell to a close. The kiss was sweet and slow. Tongues gently got involved as they deepened the contact at a steady but leisurely pace. Dipper lost himself in the sweetness of everything. He'd never quite felt and tasted Bill's lips the way he was as they laid by the sea. When he opened his eyes upon breaking the kiss, he found himself hovering above Bill. The latter's pupils were dilated and his cheeks were flushed red. Normally, the sight of him as such would inspire the need for Dipper to hear him beg for more but not this time. There was something erotic about the silence of the moment. Whatever speaking they had to do, they could communicate through the body.

Their clothes were steadily peeled from their bodies. They kissed all the while doing so, hands gently roaming the newly bare skin. The air around them was warm and comforting – perfect. Neither felt uncomfortable. Soon they were both naked, flushed against one another with lips locked and moving slowly. Dipper only pulled away when he was getting ready to start stretching Bill but then stiffened upon realizing he had forgotten to grab the bottle of lube. He mentally cursed himself but the next thing he knew a small portal opened up beside them and spat out the forgotten bottle. Dipper gave Bill a grateful look before snatching it.

He spread the liquid over his three fingers, coating them as evenly as possible before pressing the first digit to the puckered hole. Dipper teased at it briefly, rubbing small circles before carefully pushing against the tight ring of muscles. His finger slipped in easily enough and he slid it in all the way before smoothly pulling it out. A blissful breath escaped Bill's lips and he allowed breathy moans to spill from him as Dipper continued to thrust his finger in and out. Soon he added his second finger, thrusting with a scissoring motion to make the addition of the third finger easier. Unlike most of the other times they had had sex, no loud or needy noises escaped Bill's mouth.

When Bill was finally ready, he pulled out his fingers and spread lube on his hard cock. Dipper then directed the tip towards the stretched entrance and pushed in slowly. Bill let out a low hiss and arched his back slightly. The two then let out breaths they hadn't realized they had been holding when Dipper bottomed out. The latter than took Bill's hands in his, weaving their fingers together, and placing them just above his head. They held each other's gaze filled with mesmerized lust as Dipper slowly began canting and thrusting his hips. Hot, gasping moans filled the air, mostly muffled by the nearby sound of waves.

For a long moment, Bill and Dipper were one in the most intimate of ways. It was erotic as much as it was sweet and natural. The way it seemed it always should be. Their time together in such a manner felt like blissful, perfect decades when, in truth, it lasted just a short time. Before the other one knew it, tight coils had built in the pits of their stomachs and soon they were cumming with sudden and loud moans. Regardless, they stayed connected as such for a short while longer. There was something special and comforting for the two of them.

Eventually though, they did untangle themselves but they still spent a good few hours longer beneath the moon, watching the stars by the ocean.


	5. Chapter 5

**To the Anon who said Newport was in California: There are many places called "Newport" in the United States, yes there's one in California, there's also one in Rhodes Islands _and_ in Oregon. If you Google it, you'll find that it's fairly close to Portland. There are around 21 "Newports" in the United States. I guess it's a popular name.**

* * *

Dipper woke up in the warm comfort of his bed. He wasn't quite sure what it was that tore him away from the pleasant dream he had been having until he listened carefully. There was loud and frequent sniffling coming from Bill which were, on occasion, accompanied by raspy coughs. It took a moment for the sleep to leave Dipper completely. He sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes, and let out a yawn before glancing at the blonde. Bill slept on his side, facing him. His face was red, his eyes screwed shut, and his hands clutching at the bed covers.

"Bill…?" Dipper asked slowly and nudged the demon softly. "Hey…"

Bill's eyes fell open and Dipper found them red and watery. He glanced at him with evident exhaustion in his eyes. The brunet sighed, he raised the back of his hand and pressed it against Bill's forehead. It was hot and confirmed what he had already guessed: somehow, the demon had caught a cold.

"You're sick…" Dipper said in disappointment. It was a shame, how was Bill supposed to enjoy the rest of their vacation?

"Hun…it feels _terrible_ …" Bill commented tiredly, his voice congested and weak.

"How are you feeling?" Dipper asked, kicking his legs free from the covers, "Does your throat hurt?"

"Yes." Bill answered before engaging in a violent coughing fit. "And tired. Super tired."

"You sound congested too." Dipper remarked. He paused and glanced around the room. "I don't think we bought any medicine. I'll go get you some. You stay here and sleep."

"Sure—" Bill sighed and he'd hardly finished uttering the word that he'd already fallen back asleep.

Dipper watched him for a moment. He wondered if the night they'd mostly spent by the beach, naked in the night was what had caused the cold to manifest. A part of him felt bad if it did. His intention had been to spend a romantic night by the ocean, gazing at the stars, not get the demon sick. Regardless, he carefully pushed himself from the mattress and slipped on a fresh pair of clothes. He then grabbed his wallet and stuffed it in his back pocket before leaving.

"Look who's finally up!" Pacifica said a bit too loudly.

Dipper stopped in the kitchen's entrance and looked over to find his sister and her friend sitting at the table. Pacifica had toasts and jam in front of her whereas Mabel favoured a bowl of cereal. The two looked at him with wide smiles on their faces.

"Would you mind keeping it down a bit?" Dipper asked quietly as he walked into the kitchen with a heavy sigh, "Bill's sick."

"He is?" Mabel asked surprised, "I didn't know he was capable of that."

"Yeah, well, neither did I." Dipper huffed and glared at the floor.

"Hey, don't worry about it, bro!" Mabel said quickly, "It's probably not that bad."

"So that's why you're tired, hun." Pacifica concluded, "You two didn't have sex yesterday…"

"Oh, yeah, we totally did." Dipper admitted without shame, "The night was really nice so I took him out to the beach at, like, two in the morning. We looked at the stars and then one thing led to another…"

"You could see the stars?" Pacifica asked, surprised.

"Yeah." Dipper confirmed, "Why?"

Pacifica pointed at the kitchen window, exposing the deluge that was taking place outside. "Well it's raining cats and dogs." She said, "I thought it started sometime last night."

"No the sky was super clear when we were out." Dipper said and wandered close to the window. "Hun," he huffed, "Well that sucks."

"Tell me about it." Mabel said, "We were thinking about going to some outlets nearby. Are you in?"

"No." Dipper sighed, "Bill seemed kind of weak and really out of it. I'm going to get him some medicine and just take care of him."

"Aww, you're such a good boyfriend." Mabel cooed.

"Thanks." Dipper smirked briefly, "Anyways, have fun. I'm out."

"See you later." Mabel said and waved him off.

Dipper gave them a brief wave as he left the room. He snatched the keys to the house which they typically left in front of a sea fan statue and walked out into the rain. He made quick business of rushing into his car while covering his head with his hands. Then he pulled out the drive way and found the nearest pharmacy he could find. There was hardly anyone on the streets and the reason as to why was sensible. The vail of rain was so thick it limited visibility considerably. Dipper even had a hard time distinguishing the lines on the road.

He bought two packs of throat medicine so as to ease Bill's apparent throat ache, vicks vaporub for clear the congestion, and some pills for any potential headaches. Before going back to the house, he made a quick stop at a supermarket and bought chamomile tea and chicken soup. Sure Bill wasn't big on consuming food or beverages, but in this case, Dipper was sure he would appreciate.

When he got home, Mabel and Pacifica were just about ready to leave. They'd pull on some nice clothes – Mabel's really accentuated on her hourglass figure while Pacifica's simply looked nice and comfortable without really showing off her best physical assets. It was clear that Mabel had every intention of finding herself a man while shopping. By then the rain had lessened enough for the visibility not to be as terrible and Dipper felt comfortable letting his sister take the car far away from Newport.

"Did you check on him?" He asked as they pulled on their shoes.

"He's still sleeping." Mabel told him.

"You're too stressed about this." Pacifica said and twirled the umbrella she had probably packed in the mountain of things she brought. "It's probably just a cold. It's no big deal."

"I know." Dipper huffed and bit his lip, "It's just…he's a _demon_. Demons don't get sick…do they?"

Mabel shrugged, "Not the ones on Supernatural." She said.

"Those are _fictitious_ renditions of demons." Dipper reminded with a roll of the eyes, "The one we're dealing with is the real deal."

"Then we better be thankful because the ones on that show are _mean_!" Mabel joked and shoved at Dipper playfully, "Come on, brobro. You know I'm just teasing you. Pacifica's probably right anyways. He'll be fine, just you see!"

"Maybe he's becoming human." Pacifica hypothesized, "Maybe it was because of that spell you casted like seven years ago. It took away most of his power and was maybe slowly draining the rest of it."

"That's not… _impossible_." Dipper acknowledged. And the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. "He _was_ complaining about getting tired…and about how difficult it was getting to use his magic so frequently…the only reason he makes portals now is because it takes less energy to teleport."

"Well, that's a good thing, isn't it?" Pacifica asked, "If he's becoming human that means he won't be able to screw up the world again."

"There wasn't any danger of him doing that even shortly after I first beat him seven years ago." Dipper said and let out a frustrated sigh. "I made sure he couldn't get his powers back ever again before I actually decided to live life a little."

"Then what's the big problem?" Pacifica asked, perplexed.

"If he's becoming mortal…" Dipper said, "He's going to have to be more careful with himself." He pinched the bridge of his nose momentarily before snapping his gaze up, "I mean, you know how he is! He throws himself into danger and laughs it off because he can't – _couldn't_ die!"

"You're afraid he's accidentally going to kill himself." Mabel concluded.

The breath Dipper let out was shaky. It was a very real fear. One he wouldn't have had if he hadn't been in love with the blond. A part of him cursed himself for developing feelings when he should have known better.

"He would." Dipper said grimly, "You know he would."

"I think…you're too quick to make assumptions, Dipper." Mabel finally said, "I think that spell is worrying you because you didn't really know what it would do back then and, even now, that hasn't changed. I think there are a lot of possibilities or explanations as to why he got sick. Maybe he's becoming human, maybe he's not. I mean, maybe now that most of his magic has been taken away, he's just prone to getting sick. It's not uncommon in supernatural beings; those annoying gnomes in Gravity Falls get sick all the time."

"That's true." Dipper hesitantly conceded.

"So let's go back to what we've been saying from the start." Mabel said, "This is probably nothing. It's probably just a cold. It probably means nothing."

"And what if it doesn't?" Dipper asked, "What if he's becoming human?"

"Well, we'll teach him how to be human." Mabel said, "We'll keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, remind him he's not invincible anymore." She moved closer and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder before continuing, "But now you're just worrying about something that _might_ happen. Right now, I'm pretty sure Bill's still invincible. I'm pretty sure he's still a demon albeit a weaker one. If you're worried though, you can always ask him. I'm sure he'd know if he was becoming human. Just remember, whatever happens, we'll deal with it."

Mabel then gave him a big hug and held Dipper tightly. She only released him when he whispered "Thanks, Mabel".

"Do you want us to stay?" She asked.

"No, it's fine." Dipper said giving an encouraging smile, "I'll manage. You two go have fun."

"Are you sure?" Mabel insisted, "Because it's not the end of the world if—"

"I'll be fine, I promise." Dipper cut in, "If there's anything, I'll send you a text or something." He then tossed her the car keys, "Now go have fun. Really."

Mabel gave a short and uncertain nod. She held her brother's stare for a long moment before being convinced he would, indeed, be fine. Pacifica followed her quietly out of the house, opening her umbrella to shield the two of them as they made their way into the car. Dipper watched from the nearby window as they piled into the old and rusty vehicle and left. He sighed deeply before glancing back at the long hall that led the way to his room.

Bill was still sleeping and he would let him sleep. There was no point in waking him now under the pretenses he wanted to talk, to make sure the demon was truly alright. He needed his rest and Dipper would just have to find some other way to occupy himself. He took the bags of things he bought into the kitchen, putting the can of chicken soup and box of chamomile in one of the cabinets. He then stared at the two objects for a long time before deciding that he might as well drink a bit of chamomile to help calm his nerve.

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

Mabel steered the car through the streets quietly. She didn't know the exact way to the outlets but she knew the beginning of the route well enough to not necessitate directions immediately. Though she'd left Dipper to take care of Bill and knew he would be fine, she was still worried. Her brother's anxieties and fears were just so damn contagious. The truth was they didn't know anything about the spell Dipper had used nearly a decade ago. It was some random scribble Ford had created after researching everything he could on demonology. It was new, untested, and by all means never should have worked.

What if Bill was becoming human?

"Damn it," Pacifica cursed, "How the hell are we supposed to have fun after that conversation? I mean, now _I'm_ worried for that stupid demon."

"It almost feels wrong not to stay behind." Mabel mumbled, "But there's nothing we can do. We'd basically just sit around doing nothing. At most we'd talk, but it'd just be different versions of the chat we just had."

"I guess." Pacifica hummed uncertainly.

"I know my brother." Mabel said, "He's going to keep worrying and mulling over different scenarios and hypothesises. Eventually, he's going to calm down and realize there's no more point in worrying and he'll stop. It normally takes him a while to realize sometimes the only thing you can do is go with the flow."

"So we're just going to go out shopping then?" Pacifica said.

"No, we're just going to go with the flow." Mabel corrected, "And, in this case, that means going out to shop."

It took about an hour of driving through the thick rain before getting to the outlets. The duration of the drive as well as focusing on the directions had made it easier to begin moving on mentally and emotionally. Thankfully, regardless of the apparent deluge, the stores were still very much open though there didn't seem to be many customers. Mabel reckoned everyone probably just thought it was best to stay indoors and do nothing rather than go out. It was lucky for them because it meant they basically had a whole set of stores to themselves.

She parked the car as closely as possible to one of the stores they wanted to check out first. Then they huddled beneath Pacifica's umbrella and made their way inside. The store was basically empty. Three workers worked the floor: two girls that were chatting at the cash, and one guy who seemed bored out of his mind as he folded and organized clothes on display. The three seemed rather surprised to find Mabel and Pacifica walk into the store. But while the girls made no move to show great customer service, the guy took the initiative – likely because he had nothing better to do.

"Hello, how are you doing?" He said warmly, "My name is Carlos, can I help you with anything?"

"Well Carlos," Pacifica said, "You can start by telling us what the hell you did to your hair because it's _gorgeous_."

He blushed bashfully as he laughed, "Thanks, I don't do much to it actually." He admitted and passed a hand through his dark locks, "I guess it's just naturally like this."

"That's so unfair." Pacifica pouted.

"So can I help you girls find anything?" He asked again and set his gaze on Mabel.

There was a moment – a short pause that seemed electrifying. Carlos was a very handsome and kind man and Mabel could see herself having a hot summer fling with the Latino man. Fortunately, he seemed as interested in her as she was with him. If she played her cards right, she could definitely—

"That's very nice of you, Carlos," Pacifica said and looped her arm around Mabel's, "But we'll just be browsing through for now. We'll call you over if we need anything."

Mabel was so shocked by the abrupt end to their conversation that she hadn't thought to object or say anything about it until they were in a more isolated corner of the store.

"What was that for!?" She nearly whined, "He was _so_ into me!"

"I'm pretty sure he's gay." Pacifica said dismissively as she looked through the kimonos, "Trust me, you don't want to get involved and attached if he is."

"What? Why would you think that?" Mabel asked and looked back at Carlos to see if there were any betraying qualities to him but she found none.

"It's more of a gut feeling." Pacifica admitted casually, "I'm never really wrong when it comes to that."

"What if this was the one time you were wrong?" Mabel asked with a frown.

"Calm down, I'm sure I'm right." Pacifica said, "Besides, there'll be plenty more of cute guys wandering the outlets."

"There's barely anyone now." Mabel pointed out.

"All it takes is for the rain to lessen just a little bit." Pacifica stated, "Then people will come flocking to these places."

Mabel sighed but left the argument at that. It was going to be a long day.

* * *

Bill woke up a little after noon. It was convenient for Dipper because he had just finished making the chicken soup and so he brought it to the demon almost as soon as he noticed he was awake. The blond was still very drowsy, he sat up with his eyes closed for a moment as he struggled to maintain consciousness. Eating the soup helped him a lot though he did complain about it.

"It taste like… _particles_." He mumbled.

"What does that even mean?" Dipper asked with a small laugh.

"It means I don't understand why you humans _like_ eating…" he said and frowned. He sniffed a few times before asking: "Does something smell weird to you?"

"That might be the vaporub I put on your chest while you slept." Dipper said.

"Kinky." Bill grinned, "What else did you do to me while I slept?"

Dipper rolled his eyes, "It helps with congestion." He stated, "You seem to be in a better mood though."

"I don't feel as bad as when I first woke up." Bill admitted. "Throat still hurts but this soup is helping."

"I've bought cepacol for that, if it keeps hurting afterwards." Dipper informed and he fished through his pockets to pull out one of the small packets he dragged with him. "They taste like candy so it's not just some nasty medicine."

Bill looked at the packet quizzically and slowly trailed his gaze upwards. "You're really acting like a mother hen." He said and his frowned deepened, "Why?"

"Well, you're sick." Dipper answered slowly, "I'm just taking care of you."

"I have a cold." Bill said, "I recognize the symptoms, I've seen you humans suffer through it on multiple occasions. This isn't serious."

Dipper felt like Mabel was manifesting herself through Bill. He felt like the demon was literally repeating exactly what his sister had been insisting on before she left. When he'd first gotten into this conversation with Bill, he had every intention of keeping his worries to himself but not anymore. It was like the demon knew something was bothering Dipper about his illness but he wanted to hear so for himself.

"Have you ever been sick before?" Dipper asked bluntly.

"Never." Bill answered. There was a tense pause before he followed with: "Does that bother you?"

"Do you…" Dipper hesitated. He took a deep breath and mulled his thoughts over carefully, "Do you think…that you're sick now because you might be…becoming human?"

Bill stared at him blankly for a moment. He was trying to read the brunet, to see _something_ but only found seriousness instead. It had Bill doubled over, cackling and coughing to tears. He laughed so much and so hard his bowl of soup nearly toppled over and made a mess.

"It's a serious concern, _Bill_!" Dipper almost snapped.

"You're too much, Pine Tree!" He wheezed, "Oh my goodness…" he wiped the tears away and took a minute to catch his breath, "Ah…okay, look, fetch me a knife."

"What—no! Why?" Dipper actually snapped.

"Fine, I'll get it myself." Bill sighed.

He stuck out his hand and a small blue portal opened up above it. There was a short lapse before the knife fell through so fast it stabbed through Bill's hand. Dipper flinched in surprise but fear and worry quickly took over. He moved impossibly fast, pulling out the knife and throwing it away as he applied pressure to the wound.

"Bill, you idiot—!" He growled.

"Pine Tree—"

"You never think before you act!" Dipper continued.

"Calm down—"

"You can get an infection from something like this!" Dipper ranted.

"Pine Tree!" Bill finally said loud enough to shut Dipper up for a few short seconds. "Look," he gestured his hand with his gaze, "There's no blood."

Dipper carefully removed his fingers and saw that regardless of the thin hole in the palm of Bill's hand, there was indeed no blood. He then watched as the skin began stitching itself back together before him. A few seconds later, the hole was gone and it was like a knife had never stabbed clean through his hand.

"You've got a healing factor." Dipper mumbled in awe, "I didn't know that."

"It comes with the immortality." Bill said and slowly pulled his hand away, "The point is I don't bleed. I'm not becoming human."

"Then why are you sick?" Dipper asked, confused.

"That spell you used on me all those years ago added a limit to my magic." Bill reminded.

"I already know that." Dipper said.

"I mean, I can't use my magic indefinitely without getting tired anymore." The demon specified, "I've been testing out how long it takes for me to start reaching the bottom of the well and the answer is seven years. I can use my magic almost constantly for seven years straight before getting really tired. Now I've got to let my magic recharge itself."

"So this is your body's way of telling you, you need to rest?" Dipper asked.

"No, I don't think that's it." Bill mused and glanced at his hand, "My healing factor is slower now. It still works, but not as quickly. I think that was what was keeping me from getting sick before."

"If that's the case then all you really need is to rest." Dipper sighed and he suddenly felt very relieved.

"Yup!" Bill said and ate another spoonful of chicken soup, "And your human remedies help, so that's a plus. I really had you worried though."

"Yeah." Dipper admitted with a breathy laugh, "I didn't know what I was going to do if you became human…"

"Whoa, you're making it sound like it would be a bad thing." Bill remarked, "I'll have you know that I'd make a _great_ human!"

"Bill, you'd probably kill yourself within in the first few hours of having been turned." Dipper said bluntly. He knew he was right. Bill was insane. He would do something dangerous he always used to do as a demon and would likely die seconds if not minutes later.

"Rude!" Bill huffed a bit too loudly as it threw him in a coughing fit.

"It's still true." Dipper smirked and sat on the bed with a hand on the demon's knee.

"Pine Tree, we talked about this," Bill said, "I have these things called _feelings_ too, you know. And you're currently hurting them."

"Fine," Dipper smiled widely, "I'm sorry."

"Good." Bill smiled back, "Now give me a kiss."

"Ew, no." Dipper responded almost too quickly, "Sorry again, but you're sick. I don't want to be bedridden for the rest of this trip."

"You're so mean to me." Bill pouted.

"Don't worry," Dipper chuckled, "I'll give you a kiss and plenty more when you're better."

* * *

Mabel was nearing her last nerve. There were surprisingly a lot of hot guys at the outlets that found Mabel was exactly their type. However, the most she'd managed to do with any of them was flirt and get their names. The second things were on the verge of progressing in a substantial way, Pacifica would swoop in and stop everything. It was like she didn't know how to read a situation anymore. She used these lines that Mabel knew she only used when she was saving her from the advances of a really annoying or douchey guy when the people she spoke to where the sweetest and kindest.

What was really becoming irritating though was how guys would simply stop approaching Mabel. The most they would now do was stare at her from afar and offer her kind smiles. She didn't understand why they were being so evasive all of a sudden but she had a sneaking suspicion that the word on how things normally went with her and Pacifica was finally getting around. It was severely disappointing and ruining all of her hopes of ever having her hot summer romance before August was finally up.

Now she stood near the changing room halls of another clothes store and waited for Pacifica to finish trying on the clothes she'd selected. Mabel had stopped looking. She'd already bought a lot of things and had gone slightly over her self-imposed limit – but that scarf was completely worth it. Regardless, all she wanted to do was go back to the rented house and maybe have a beer or cooler or something to drown a bit of her sadness away.

"Hey—" A guy who had seemingly appeared out of nowhere said.

The man surprised Mabel so much she'd nearly dropped her phone on the ground. She blushed in embarrassment as she tried to compose herself and ignore the yelp she'd let out. The man in front of her was likely the hottest man she'd seen at the outlets today. He was fairly tall, blond with these beautiful blue eyes, and muscular. He either spent his life growing up in a gym or he was a body builder, there were no other explanations. Unless he both spent his life growing up in a gym and became a body builder somewhere along the way.

"I'm sorry, did I scare you?" He said with a pleasant laugh.

"You surprised me a little." Mabel admitted.

"Sorry about that. Again." He said a bit sheepishly, "I just saw you standing here alone. You looked bored so I thought I'd swing by and talk to you until your girlfriend finished trying on her clothes. At least, that's what I'm assuming she's doing."

"That's really sweet of you." Mabel said with a wide smile. Perhaps not all was lost. "I'm Mabel."

"Steve." He said and extended his hand, "Steve Rogers."

"So what brings you to the outlets on this stormy day, Steve Rogers?" Mabel grinned.

If Pacifica could keep changing her clothes for just a short while longer, maybe she could get this gorgeous man's phone number.

"I was in the area and bored." Steve said and leaned against the nearby wall, "I'm actually an artist. I came out to this part of Oregon to paint the ocean and the forest, but I can't really do that today."

"That's really cool." Mabel said but she was admittedly surprised. "I honestly thought you were a body builder or something. Like, you're huge."

"Spent a lot of time in the gym when I was a kid." Steve admitted and Mabel was happy that at least one of her guesses had been on the nose. "So what about you?"

"I'm a student." Mabel admitted, "I'm in the fashion program."

"That must be fun." Steve said and the wonderful thing was that he sounded genuine – like he wasn't saying that to please Mabel because it was what he actually thought. "Are you looking to start your own line of clothes, then?"

Steve seemed perfect. Mabel liked talking to him. He seemed openly interested in things about her and she was very much interested in learning more about his life as an artist. She was just getting ready to start babbling excitedly about her plans for the future when Pacifica's changing room door open and she came prancing out with her arms filled with clothes.

"I'm done!" She announced, "I'm keeping two tops – the purple one and the light blue one – and this one pair of skinny jeans that make my ass look gre—"

She interrupted herself when she saw to whom Mabel had been speaking with but not for the reason the latter thought. A smile spread on her face and Pacifica suddenly seemed excited.

"Oh my gosh, _Steve_!" Pacifica said and ran to him, throwing her arms around him, "I thought I was hearing you but I wasn't sure!"

"Pacifica!" Steve said and hugged her back.

"You…you know him?" Mabel asked. As surprised as she was, she found it could still be a good thing. Pacifica could finally take up her role of wingwoman and help Mabel woo this beautiful man.

"Yeah, Steve's a friend. I met him in Brooklyn." Pacifica explained, "He was selling art from the street side and was the only one who had actually drawn the things he was selling. He's actually really amazing."

"Pacifica bought a lot of them and actually helped me kick off my career." Steve explained with a fond smile. "You know," he said and turned to her, "I was hearing the guys here talk about a lesbian couple with a possessive blonde and thought it might have been you. What are the odds?"

"Wh—" Mabel stuttered, "No, we're not a couple."

"Hun." Steve huffed, "That's weird, you're Pacifica's type."

"Steve—!" Pacifica hissed and slapped his arm.

That last line began resonating with Mabel who was stunned into silence for a moment. As Pacifica quickly tried to change the topic by asking about Steve's current boyfriend – the man was apparently bisexual – Mabel began to connect some of the dots. Pacifica was a lesbian. It explained a lot of things in regards to how she had been acting for the past few days. She didn't look at guys who checked her out but Mabel did catch her staring at women for a particularly long time. Steve had also just used the term "lesbian couple". Maybe he was saying a direct quote or it simply stemmed from his choice of words because of how well he knew Pacifica.

So what Mabel now wondered was why, if Pacifica was indeed a lesbian, she had never thought to say something. She should have known Mabel would still have accepted her because Dipper was bisexual and Bill was gay and she loved them all the same. She understood that, sometimes, it wasn't always something that was easily admitted for personal reasons but it only made her believe that it was because Pacifica, her best friend, didn't trust her enough with the information. If her parents or just someone important instilling this fear in her, it meant she didn't trust Mabel not to accidentally blurt it to them. If it was just fear in terms of their friendship changing just a tad bit over the truth, it meant she didn't trust Mabel to act like a person. It overall just meant that she didn't trust Mabel and the hurt that inspired was mind numbing.

"Well it was nice talking with you, Steve." Pacifica said and waved him off, "We should really hang out some time."

He left the store with a wide grin and a friendly wave. Mabel only mustered to offer him a smile.

"Wow, talk about a coincidence." Pacifica laughed, "I never thought I'd see him again here out of all places."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Mabel asked quietly.

"Wh…what?" Pacifica asked slowly.

"You know what." Mabel said, "Don't play dumb, I heard."

Pacifica's smile went away impossibly fast and her cheeks started flushing pink. "I just…it never really had the opportunity to come up." She said.

Mabel frowned, "I'm sorry, I don't buy that." She said, "The many times we hung out and I tried pushing you towards guys I thought you would look cute with were the perfect opportunities. I mean, weren't you annoyed? Didn't you want me to stop?"

"Well…a little…" Pacifica admitted sheepishly.

"Then why didn't you say anything?" Mabel asked and she felt her throat tighten with emotion. "Was it something I did or said at one point? Is it because of me that you never felt comfortable telling me you like girls?"

"No! No, it wasn't!" Pacifica was quick to say.

"What then? Why didn't you just tell me?" Mabel asked.

Pacifica opened her mouth to speak but she froze before uttering a sound. She stared at Mabel for a moment, desperately trying to form words until she sighed and settled on doing something else. "It…it's complicated." She said, "I just…I couldn't, okay?"

Mabel also let out a sigh, willing herself to calm down as she gave a nod. "Fine." She said, "But you know that I still love you, right? Even if I am hurt."

Pacifica's frown seemed to deepen for a second before spreading into a smile. "Yeah." She said softly. "Thanks."

"Now let's go back home." Mabel said, "I think we're done here for the day anyway."

They left the outlets, throwing their bags into the back of the car before hopping in and driving off. The sky was still covered with dark grey clouds but the rain had lessened considerably – so much so that more people dared to leave their homes. And though things seemed to have resolved themselves just then, the previous tension had followed Pacifica and Mabel into the car and all the way back to the rented house. try as they might to ignore it and will it away, it remained all the same.

Upon arriving, they found that Bill was awake and feeling considerably better. From the sounds of it, it was like his fever had broken and he was on the path to a speedy recovery. He and Dipper chatted loudly from the comfort of their room as they watched TV while seated and snuggled up on their bed. Pacifica and Mabel dumped their bags into their own separate rooms. The latter then went to the kitchen to find it virtually empty save for the countless cans of alcohol stocking the levels.

"There's no food left!" Mabel yelled, "I'm going to go out to buy some!" She left the kitchen and came across Pacifica. "Are you coming?"

"No, I have to take care of things." Pacifica said, "Daddy's showing me the ropes of the business and whatever, so I get a lot of emails now and I haven't checked them in a while."

"Alright, is there anything you want?" Mabel asked.

"Vegetables. And lots of them." Pacifica said.

"I'm off then." Mabel announced as she made her way for the door, "I'll be back in thirty minutes."

Pacifica watched her leave and waited until she saw the car leave through the window before making her way into Dipper's room. She didn't care that she interrupted their conversation or that she was seemingly rude. She grabbed the remote and shut the TV off, earning angry scowls from the two men.

"What are you doing?" Dipper frowned.

Pacifica took a deep breath and bit her lip, "I want to…" she hesitated, "I want to tell you my side of the story."

The confession came as a surprise to Dipper who had been expecting anything except that. He looked over at Bill who gave him a shrug, and then sat up comfortably and gestured a space on the bed. "Alright," he said, "Let's talk about it."


	6. Chapter 6

**I would like to take this time to remind people that I've never been to Newport, Oregon and have no idea what their aquarium looks like. Because of that and the lack of wanting to utilize Google, I based myself from my memories of having visited the Tampa Bay, Florida aquarium (like 3 years ago). This version of Newport is now, officially, a mash up of WildWoods, NJ, Old Orchard Beach, Maine, and Tampa Bay, Florida.**

* * *

Pacifica was in love with Mabel. Pacifica had been in love with Mabel for a rather long time but chose to ignore it. She had hoped that if she forced herself to look and admire other girls that were her type, she could fall for one of them and move on. She had been wrong. The truth was that ever since Pacifica had been made aware of her sexuality, she only had eyes for Mabel. It was both painful and sad considering the latter was very much heterosexual. And try as she might to find someone – anyone that was like her in looks and attitude, Pacifica still couldn't love them as much as she did the brunette. So after a hopeless search for a second Mabel, she abandoned and resolved to simply love unrequitedly and pine.

But that had only worked for so long.

After two years of maintaining the charade, Pacifica found it difficult to watch as Mabel flung herself left and right at men she barely knew who would then proceed to break her heart. It made her as angry as it did jealous. Pacifica knew Mabel's type; they'd become best friends over the past seven years so she basically knew everything there was to know about the quirky young adult. She knew Mabel sought for a prince and that money wasn't necessarily a qualifier for the description of "prince". A prince to Mabel was someone courteous, kind, brave, loving, and charming. And hopefully foreign. Mabel wanted someone who could bring her on romantic adventures across the world – or across the State; whatever they could afford. Pacifica always thought they were requirements she could fulfill but Mabel wanted a _prince_ , not a _princess_.

Regardless of that evident fact, Pacifica tried in very subtle ways to woo Mabel by dragging her along in activities she would typically consider romantic. For example, she bought two magnificent white horses and asked Mabel to come take them for a stroll through the woods and later that day, they had a picnic by a creak in a meadow. Another time, she invited Mabel to a fancy soirée where the rich had gathered to watch a rendition of Romeo and Juliette with famous A-list actors. Heck, she even organised countless parties over the summer at her house just so Mabel could come dressed in a ball gown and feel like a princess. Perhaps showering Mabel with expensive gifts and activities wasn't the best tactic Pacifica could have employed considering the former never saw them as anything more than friendly. And yet, it made the blonde just as happy because she could pretend for the duration of the moment that she and Mabel were actually an item.

Pacifica reckoned it was allowing herself to pretend that pushed her to dissuade Mabel from the men she found she liked. It allowed for her jealousy to grow in such a way that she could no longer stop herself from finding the flaws in the candidates or simply writing them off as gay if they were just too perfect. But Pacifica noticed that she was beginning to push her luck. Mabel was a bit clueless but she was far from stupid and she was beginning to see through her friend's charade. It had all begun to tumble down when a friend she really shouldn't have met in Newport of all places accidentally outted her sexuality, which she had been keeping as a secret from nearly everyone except her parents up to that point.

With the cat out of the bag and Mabel steadily putting the pieces of the puzzle together, it was only a matter of time before Pacifica's unrequited love would be exposed. If there was any way Pacifica could have prevented that from happening, she would have done it in a heartbeat but as it was, there was nothing she could do. So she turned to Dipper. If Mabel was going to realize sooner or later – probably sooner – that she was in love with her and had felt this way for a long time, Pacifica wanted to know what type of reaction she should be expecting. She might as well have known everything there was to Mabel what with the strong friendship they had built over almost a decade, there just some things you couldn't predict.

"Okay, so let me get this straight." Dipper said, "You're _in love_ with Mabel. You don't just love her, you're _in_ love."

"Yes." Pacifica said stiffly.

"I fucking knew it." Dipper grinned and he glanced at Bill who pouted and glared off to the side, "Come on, you big baby." He said to him and extended his hand expectantly. "Pay up."

"W-what?" Pacifica stuttered in surprise.

"This is stupid." Bill complained and grumbled as opened a portal over Dipper's hand to spit out some money, "You frigging girls and your lesbian-looking friendships. Don't call a girl your damn girlfriend if she's not actually your girlfriend!"

"I-I never did that…like ever." Pacifica stated.

"Well, Shooting Star does it _all the time_!" Bill groaned, throwing his arms in the air in exasperation, "It's really annoying and misleading!"

"So you guys betted on… _this_?" Pacifica asked, setting her disbelieving gaze on Dipper.

"Yup." He said, grinning wider, "I see the way you look at my sister when you think no one's looking. I also notice how angry you get when guys start flirting with her. To anyone else, you'd look totally indifferent but I can see how you really feel."

"How so?" Pacifica asked, she didn't quite believing him.

"Because I get angry in the same way when guys start checking out Bill." Dipper admitted and a small smile tugged at the demon's lips as he tried to remain bitter in the face of having lost a bet.

"Girls check him out too, you know." Pacifica pointed out.

"Yeah, but Bill's gay so there's no real chance of anything happening with them." Dipper shrugged off.

"So what do you think's going to happen, then?" Pacifica asked, "When Mabel finds out, I mean."

"That you have the biggest crush on her?" Dipper asked rhetorically, "I don't know. It's hard to guess. She won't be rude, that's for sure. She's always super nice and careful when she rejects people because the last thing she wants to do is hurt their feelings."

"She's going to reject me…" Pacifica huffed and she sounded disappointed even if she knew it was the only thing that could happen.

"I don't know." Dipper said and his tone caught the blonde's attention, "Mabel acts differently with you. At first I thought it was because you were a rich kid and she just wanted to be on your level of standards or something like that, but that's not it."

"What do you mean?" Pacifica asked and she couldn't help the hopeful thudding of her heart.

"It's hard to put into words." Dipper explained, "She just…she treats you differently than Candy and Grenda or any of her other friends back home. She's more… _careful_ , I guess."

"Careful?" She repeated.

"Not in the fragile sense of the word," Dipper said as he struggled to put his thoughts into words, "Or in the "if I say the wrong thing, she won't be my friend anymore" kind of way either… just, you know, careful."

"That doesn't make much sense." Pacifica stated bluntly.

"It's like I said," He reminded, "It's hard to put into words."

"So do you think she'll pretend to be in love with me or something?" Pacifica asked, "Because she'd be scared that our friendship would end and she'd see that as the only way to save it."

"That's not Mabel's style." Dipper said and shook his head, "If she doesn't want to date you even to the peril of your friendship, she won't date you."

"Shooting Star's got a gentle heart," Bill said, "It's how she was able to forgive and move past what we both did."

"Mostly you." Pacifica said.

"Hey, you were a real jerk to her when you were kids!" Bill stated with a frown, "And yeah, I was too, but I'm a _demon_ , what's your excuse?"

"Okay, calm down Bill." Dipper said, patting the demon's head, then he turned to Pacifica, "But what he says is true. You don't have to worry about things going sour because they probably won't."

"That's comforting." Pacifica sighed, "But what should I do now?"

"You've got two obvious choices," Dipper said, "You can wait for her to figure it out and see if she does anything about it, or you can tell her yourself and try to control the outcome."

"How?" She asked.

"One last ditch effort to seduce her?" Dipper suggested. "If it doesn't work, it doesn't work but at least you tried."

"I wouldn't even know where to start." Pacifica admitted in defeat. "I never expected any of this would happen…"

"Don't worry about that, we'll help you." Dipper said.

" _We'll_?" Bill scoffed, "She's not been the nicest to me, in case you haven't noticed."

"True." Dipper conceded, "But did you really expect everyone to forgive you so easily over the End of the world thing?"

"You humans suck at the bygones be bygones thing." He grumbled.

"Why _would_ you help?" Pacifica asked, "Not that I'm ungrateful or anything…I just don't get it. _We_ hate each other."

"I always thought it was more of an antagonistic-friendship." Dipper admitted with a grin, "Regardless, Mabel's my sister and you mean a lot to her, whether she actually loves you in the same way you love her or not."

"Fair enough." Pacifica said. "So what's the plan?"

* * *

When Dipper woke up the following day, he was happy to see that Bill's cold had seemingly gone. He couldn't be certain for sure until the blond demon woke up but he trusted in his hunch. That healing factor was amazing and it made the brunet a bit envious. The amount of illnesses and sick days he could have skipped out on had he been blessed with unnatural healing abilities.

He slipped out of the bed and popped into the shower for a quick wash. On the way out and as he dressed himself, he noticed the sky was blue and the sun shone brightly. It was great to see that the storm was over so soon and would make today's plans all the better. As soon as Mabel would wake up, they'd launch what he dubbed as "Operation Cupid". The plan was to have Pacifica bring Mabel on this magnificent date the whole day at the end of which she would tell her how she really felt. Now the idea didn't guarantee that, by the end of it, Mabel would reciprocate Pacifica's feelings, but it did up her chances – or so they thought.

Dipper actually found Pacifica when he made his way to the kitchen to make himself breakfast. He was surprised to see Mabel was nowhere in sight because the two girls were normally up at roughly the same time. What was more poignant than that was that Pacifica was attempting to make pancakes. She had actually made a mess of the kitchen, with flour covering most of the surfaces within the room, milk steadily dripping onto the floor, and far too many egg shells lying about.

"What the hell happened here?" Dipper asked as he walked in, stepping over the growing milk puddle.

"This is impossible!" Pacifica growled in frustration and shoved her bowl forward. It hit the carton of salt which fell and spilled all over the counter.

"Have you never cooked in your life?" Dipper asked and he began to clean the mess directly in front of him.

"No, actually, I haven't." Pacifica stated with great frustration, "I have people for that! I never thought I would need that stupid skill."

"Doesn't seem so stupid now, does it?" Dipper smirked, "Did you at least try to follow a recipe?"

Pacifica snapped her mouth shut and blushed in embarrassment. Dipper nearly started laughing then and there but the blonde was quick to stop him. "Shut the fuck up." She practically hissed, "Why aren't you with Bill anyways? Where is he?"

"He's still sleeping, I think." Dipper said, "I'm going to let him rest and wake up on his own. Until then, I'll help you salvage… _that_."

Their eyes fell upon the bowl of goop on the counter. If it was meant to look like pancake batter, it failed. For some inexplicable reason, the thing was practically gray and seemed to be as hard as a rock. Honestly, Dipper wouldn't have been very surprised if it _had_ been a rock.

"I don't think you can salvage that." Pacifica said.

"Yeah, we might as well start from scratch." Dipper agreed.

They cleaned the mess Pacifica had made and threw out whatever monstrosity she had been concocting until Dipper's intervention. They'd nearly thrown the bowl away as well because they had such a difficult time scrapping off the failed pancake batter. However, everything found itself clean and in order fairly quickly. Dipper then pulled out his phone and googled a recipe for fluffy pancakes which he then proceeded to follow. It was easy and simple and little room for mistake. Pacifica helped to the best of her ability under the brunet's watchful eyes and soon they were ready to make the first one.

"So just pour a little in the pan when it's hot enough," Dipper instructed as he took a seat at the kitchen table, "When you see the batter start bubbling, you need to take the spatula and flip it."

"You seem pretty comfortable doing this…" Pacifica remarked.

"If you're implying that I'm an amazing cook, I'm really not." Dipper said, "I just know the bare minimum and how to follow a recipe."

Pacifica rolled her eyes and poured in a bit of the batter. Dipper raised a bit from his chair to see if she was doing it right. The shape wasn't exactly a circle but it was good enough. He sat back down and waited. Pacifica kept her eyes glued onto the frying pan, ready to act but she quickly got bored.

"How long does this take?" She asked.

"Like, two or three minutes more or less." Dipper hypothesized.

"These are the longest two or three minutes of my life." Pacifica huffed in exasperation.

"It's barely been a few seconds." Dipper pointed out.

"I don't have the patience for this." She said.

"Don't increase the heat." Dipper warned, "You'll just screw it all up."

"What's going on here?" Mabel asked as she walked into the kitchen, rubbing her bleary eyes.

"You're up later than I thought you would be." Dipper said.

"I may or may not have had slightly too much to drink yesterday." Mabel admitted and moved to the stove. "Are you making pancakes?"

"Yep." Pacifica said and flashed her a big and beautiful smile, "You want some?"

"S-sure." Mabel stuttered, taken aback by her brightness.

"Then grab a plate and I'll give you the first one when it's ready." Pacifica said.

Mabel nodded and reached at the cupboards for a plate. She then glanced wearily into the frying pan and then at Pacifica repeatedly. "I think you should flip it over before it burns." Mabel said.

Pacifica gasped and glanced at the pancake whereas Dipper jumped from his seat to look from where he stood. "I told you to flip it when it started bubbling!" Dipper scolded.

"I didn't know you meant _those_ kinds of bubbles!" Pacifica snapped and hurriedly flipped it over.

"Well, hey, it's not that bad." Mabel said with a laugh as she patted her friend's back, "It's super golden but it's not burnt."

"That side will take less time to cook now." Dipper said, "So check it frequently and then remove it."

Pacifica nodded and hardly a minute later, the pancake was ready and she slipped it onto Mabel's plate. Mabel grinned and thanked her before grabbing a fork and returning to the kitchen table. "I'd like another one if you've got enough batter later."

"Oh, you can have my portion." Dipper said quickly, "I'll eat an apple or something."

"What? You love pancakes." Mabel said with a suspicious look and then glanced wearily at the pancakes like there might have been something very wrong with them.

"I-I just want to start eating healthy!" He provided, "I think I'm starting to gain weight and I don't like it so I'm going to eat…healthy."

"Maybe I should…?" Mabel started, looking at her brother for signs that she really shouldn't eat what was on her plate.

Dipper began panicking. He didn't know what to say to convince Mabel to just eat it. When he'd decided to eat an apple instead, it had been so Pacifica could have strictly served his sister, not to subtly say the pancakes were toxic.

"Yeah, no, go ahead!" Dipper insisted, "It's just, you know me, my body image is super negative!" he followed his comment by a forced and unconvincing laugh that seemed to increase his sister's worry.

Dipper could feel Pacifica's glare digging into his skin. If looks could kill, he'd be six feet underground. He tried to think of something to say that would remedy the situation but as he panicked all the more, words started fleeing his mind. It was like his brain was abandoning ship and he couldn't just force himself to speak, Lord knew only idiocy would leave his lips.

"Wow, pancakes!" Bill said and it was like he seemingly appeared out of nowhere, "I love those things!" He then reached over and snatched a piece off the one on Mabel's plate to eat, "Yum!" he continued with painfully forced enthusiasm, "My favourite particles…"

Mabel then curiously gazed at the food in front of her and carefully took off a piece with her fork. She looked it over before actually eating it. "Wow, these actually _are_ pretty good." Mabel said with genuine surprise, "I don't know why you're not having any."

"I told you," Dipper insisted through gritted teeth, "I'm _trying_ to be healthy."

"Whatever, more for us." Mabel said and grinned at Bill.

"I'm actually pretty full, Shooting Star." Bill said and took a seat next to Dipper, "I don't need much food – or any, actually. I just make exceptions sometimes."

Mabel shrugged and continued eating while Pacifica hummed contentedly and made another. Dipper leaned over and whispered a quick "thank you" into his boyfriend's ear. Bill just rolled his eyes and smiled.

"You seem to be doing better." Mabel said.

"Yeah, I got to hold back on magic use though." Bill sighed, "No hovering or unnecessary teleportations for a while. I got to use these old things." And he raised his legs briefly to gesture them.

"So your cold was magic related?" Mabel asked.

"In a way." The demon said, "Say, don't you want maple syrup with that?"

"Sure, but we didn't get any so I'll make do." Mabel said.

"Or _I_ can just get some." Bill said and a blue portal spat out a can of Canadian maple syrup onto the table.

"Bill!" Dipper snapped, "Didn't you literally just say you had to hold back on magic use!?"

"Yeah but I can at least summon _that_." Bill said.

"Oh my god…" Dipper hissed to himself, "At least send some money back. This is basically stolen."

"Fine…" Bill huffed and did as he was told.

The next pancake Pacifica dropped on Mabel's plate was quickly drenched in maple syrup. By the end of breakfast, Mabel was practically liking the sugary liquid from her plate while Dipper bitterly ate his apple, fantasising about the pancakes that were no longer. Sometimes it was hard being a good person.

"Today," Pacifica eventually said, "I thought we could maybe go out to the aquarium?"

"Sure, that sounds like fun." Mabel beamed.

"Bill and I'll stay behind." Dipper said.

"Oh." Mabel said and a grin spread on her face, "Are you _busy_."

"We will be." Bill responded with a purr and wrapped his arms around Dipper's neck. Dipper rolled his eyes but blushed all the same.

"Don't get too _busy_ though." Mabel warned, "I don't think we have a washing machine in this house."

After quickly cleaning the kitchen, Mabel and Pacifica left to get ready to leave. Dipper and Bill essentially did nothing as they waited for the girls to get ready to leave. It already really did seem like they were getting ready to fuck as soon as they'd leave the house but the truth was far from that. They were meant to tail Mabel and Pacifica from afar and help the latter if she needed any assistance. If Mabel started ogling at some guy, they could interfere and get rid of him long enough for Pacifica to redirect her attention. And if the blonde ever found herself in an awkward position where she didn't know how to act, Dipper could text her some suggestions and options.

"You know…" Bill whispered in Dipper's ear with a growing grin, "We actually _could_ —"

"No." Dipper said, "We need to focus."

Mabel and Pacifica then walked down the short hall ready to go. They gave them a short wave and Mabel joked about using a condom to not get pregnant before passing through the door. Pacifica glanced behind her as the door was closing and Dipper caught a glimpse of her nervous expression. It was funny to see her not be her confident self. Maybe it was because she wasn't sure if she was going to get what she wanted at the end of the day. It probably would have been a first.

"I'm going to throw this out there…" Bill said as he started walking back towards the bedroom, "But it's not like we can leave right _now_ …"

"Bill—" Dipper sighed.

"No, no, it's fine." He insisted nonchalantly, "You sit here and do nothing while I go in the bedroom and _entertain myself_ while thinking about doing… _something_."

The words sent pleasurably bolts straight to Dipper's groin. It wasn't like he hadn't had sex with Bill in a while – they'd screwed about two days ago. And yet, the brunet felt like he hadn't seen any action in _months_. He turned his gaze to the door, frowning and wondering if he really should do nothing. Bill had a point. It wasn't like they could start tailing them immediately. They were in a residential neighbourhood; they couldn't hide within a crowd when there was no crowd in which to hide. Having sex _was_ a way to pass the time and they had managed to squeeze in quickies on multiple occasions before – during one of which Ford had walked in on them, but Dipper didn't want to think about that.

"God damn it!" He cursed to himself as he stomped down the corridor and made his way to his room.

Bill sat on the bed and wore a large grin. He'd already stripped himself of his shirt and sat, facing Dipper, with his legs wide open. His pyjama pants were very loose but his erection still managed to make a noticeable tent with the fabric. "I knew you wouldn't resist me for so long." He chuckled.

The brunet sighed impatiently and crossed his arms over his chest, looking at Bill expectantly. The demon seemed very confused by his demeanour. Clearly, he had been expecting to have been jumped almost immediately. But Dipper stood at the edge of the bed, waiting for something with an impatient expression.

"Well?" Dipper finally asked.

"Well what?" Bill returned.

"I'm waiting." Dipper stated.

"I don't understand—"

"You said you were going to entertain yourself." Dipper said and he struggled to maintain serious as his cheeks began turning pink. "Show me."

Bill blinked in surprised. He hadn't been expecting that sort of response. "You're such a pervert…" he grinned as he slipped off his pyjama pants and threw them aside.

Dipper took in a sharp breath at the naked sight of the blond. It wasn't like it was the first time he saw him as such, it was more that he struggled to maintain his fading composure in favour of not jumping Bill just yet. He wanted to see him pleasure himself. He wanted to see how Bill touched himself.

Bill let out a breathy laugh and leaned back a little. Slowly, his hand made its way to his erection that already had small white beads appearing from the tip. Those beginnings of precum betrayed how very aroused he was at the idea of Dipper watching him. His fingers gently curled around the length of his cock, applying a soft pleasure to start with. Then he started giving himself lazy pumps, leaning his head against his own shoulder as he watched his hand move.

"Eyes on me." Dipper commanded after a very short moment.

The demon flinched but did as he was told. His cheeks flushed red, a small feeling of embarrassment flourishing from the pit of his gut. Dipper's stare was hard and focused. It scanned his body, watched his hand move over his cock, and then met Bill's gaze. It spoke volumes more than it should and the blond understood perfectly the silent commands sent his way. He breathed deeply, his tone shaking with arousal as he tightened his grip on himself and raised his other hand to his nipple to begin playing with them.

He rubbed and pinched at the pink nub in the same ways Dipper did when he was the one touching him. He closed his eyes to help himself remember the sensation but the former's quick grunt reminded Bill to keep his eyes open. He bit his lower lip, stifling any mewls and whimpers that threatened to pour from his mouth. And yet he couldn't help but gasp when some of the coils in his stomach tightened drastically the more he continued pumping himself to completion.

"Faster." Dipper commanded.

Bill nodded briefly, pressing harder on his nipple as his hand moved faster. He tightened his grip as well and teased his tip hastily. All the demon wanted was to cum and he felt like he was on the brink of it. Just a little more and the tightening coils would release and a warm, white liquid would shoot out of him. However, no matter how close he was, it seemed he lacked the final thing he needed to ejaculate and it was starting to make him desperate. He pumped himself faster, forsook the block he had put on himself in terms of moaning, and closed his eyes to concentrate on the pleasurable feeling that enveloped his body.

But it did nothing. It was like there was something wrong with his hands and the way he touched himself. His hands were too small, his skin too soft, and that made the way he touched and pinched himself feel unsatisfying. He never really tried to bring himself to completion before, never really masturbated, and Bill found he likely never could because, with the flash of an epiphany, he realized his body was accustomed to Dipper. It didn't matter that he did the same things the other did to him – Dipper wasn't the one touching him. He needed Dipper.

And the latter knew.

"What's wrong?" he teased and inched closer, "You can't get yourself off?"

"Sh-shut up!" Bill tried to snap but it was more of a whimper.

Dipper leaned closer, planting both of his hands on the edge of the bed. His grin grew wider as the demon's frustration seemed to continue increasing. "How about you try playing with your ass?" Dipper suggested.

Bill's eyes opened quickly and he looked at Dipper disbelievingly. The latter was flattered that the demon thought such a suggestion was above himself when it really wasn't. He bit his lip again and moved the hand that was pumping his dick to his entrance while the other one took its original place. Dipper kept his eyes trained on the way his fingers experimentally probed at the throbbing ring of muscles. He watched as they circled it before his index finger pushed against it and breached it. A gasp left Bill's lips and Dipper salivated as that first digit began thrusting in and out.

"Deeper." Dipper said, "You know I go deeper."

Bill whimpered and pushed his finger in as deep as he could. His eyes snapped wide open again but this time it was because he had brushed against his prostate. Dipper grinned as the desperation in the demon was renewed and he quickly added a second finger to help reach that special spot embedded into him. The rate of his breath increased, matching the speed at which his other hand fucked his cock. Dipper didn't know how his mere curiosity to see what would happen next was able to hold him back. His own erection was throbbing impatiently in his pants, begging to find its way into Bill's tight ass.

"A-ah! Dipper—" he finally gasped and the brunet flinched in surprise at the use of his name.

He would likely never get used to it – at least, coming from Bill.

"Please—" he begged and his voice was utterly wrecked with lust. "Please—I can't…"

"You need me to fuck you?" Dipper asked.

"I-I can't do it myself—" Bill nearly cried.

"What would you have done if I wasn't there to take care of you?" Dipper asked with a pleased hum.

"I don't know and I don't care!" Bill snapped but the whimper he then made took the seriousness from his tone, "Please—just…I need you – I can't…"

Dipper's restraint then officially reached its end. He crawled onto the bed and pressed his lips roughly against the blonde's. It was a short but messy kiss that was broken when Bill was pushed back against the bed and then flipped over. Dipper pulled his hips up, earning more whimpers and begging moans from Bill who wanted nothing more than to cum. He made quick work of freeing his erection from his pants and boxers. Then he pushed his throbbing member into Bill's stretched ass, sighing in relief as he finally began pleasuring himself at long last. They didn't slow down there. Dipper began pounding into Bill, gripping his hips tightly and helping the latter meet his every thrust. The most beautiful sounds left the demon, augmenting in volume as he quickly reached the peak of his tipping point.

Bill gripped at the covers, burying his face in them as he let out a bliss scream and came hard on himself and the bed beneath. He tightened around Dipper but it wasn't enough to make him cum yet. He continued thrusting in an almost animalistic way into the exhausted blond. The demon continued to whimper and moan, still clutching at the covers as he trembled from overstimulation. It was driving him mad but before he knew it, a warm liquid filled him to the brim and the everlasting thrusting stopped.

Dipper pulled himself out with a wet plop and collapsed next to his demon, throwing his arms above his head. "I'm not sure I want to go out tailing Pacifica and Mabel so soon after this…" he said breathlessly.

"We don't have to go _now_ …" Bill responded as he rolled onto his back and snuggled up to his human.

"I guess it's best that we wait until we're sure they're in the aquarium." Dipper said, but he was really just coming up with excuses at this point. However, his phone then buzzed and when Dipper picked it up, he found Pacifica had sent him an angry text demanding where they were. "Or not."

* * *

They had made it to the aquarium without Mabel getting distracted by men. If anything, she would sometimes pause the conversation they were having to point out girls to Pacifica almost as though she was making up for the countless times she had tried to force men upon her. As sweet as it was, it was a bit awkward and frustrating considering that the whole point of this outing was to woo Mabel. At the end of the day, Pacifica _did_ intend to tell her how she really felt about her.

That being said, more than the frustration of Mabel pointing out women was not catching the sight of Dipper and Bill tagging them like they said they would. At first she had thought they were really just _that_ good. Pacifica didn't put it past Dipper what with all the supernatural adventures he had had. If he wanted to catch a troublesome supernatural being, surely he would have learned a thing or two about stalking. But then she quickly realized what was probably the likeliest of scenarios: he got distracted by Bill. An angry text quickly confirmed her suspicion and they assured her they would soon be on their way.

For a small place like Newport, the aquarium was rather impressive. It had a large lobby with plastic sea creatures hanging from the ceiling. On the left was a series of glass windows and a door which gave out on the gift shop and on the right was the entrance booth. The creators of this particular aquarium, however, had clearly taken children into consideration as there was a tank just next to the stairs leading to the second floor where kids could pet small sharks and stingrays under the supervision of an employee. And yet Pacifica spotted a group of excited teenagers running towards the tank excitedly.

"This place is so cool!" Mabel marvelled with a twinkle in her eyes. "I've never actually been to an aquarium before but this is…amazing! It's really not what I was expecting!"

"I'm just surprised this municipality was able to afford it." Pacifica commented and just as she spoke she felt her phone buzz in her pocket, "I guess it probably has to do with the amount of money they make every summer from tourists."

"We should go to that tank once we pay." Mabel said, gesturing the crowded pool of stingrays and small sharks.

"You should go right now," Pacifica suggested instead, "I'll pay for the both of us. It'll just take a few seconds, there's like three people in line."

"Uh, really?" Mabel asked, surprised, "Are you sure? I mean, I can pay for myself—"

"No, no, it's _fine_." Pacifica assured with what she hoped was a light hearted laugh, "I _am_ super rich. It's no big deal—" her phone buzzed again, "Just save what money you made this summer for something else."

Mabel seemed torn between accepting and refusing.

"Don't worry about it, Mabel." Pacifica assured with a genuinely soft smile, "If it worries you so much, pay me back later for something else. Like lunch."

"Deal!" Mabel declared, "But don't try weaseling your way out of it by ordering cheap food!"

"Promise." Pacifica lied.

Mabel then quickly darted into the tank's direction, finding a big enough space next to two children for her to fit. Pacifica watched as she fearlessly dived her hand into the water to touch one of the sea creatures. She then turned away and stood behind two people in order to pay for her and Mabel's ticket. While she waited, she took out her phone to see who texted her.

 _Dipper: We're here and don't say that. (9:59)_

 _Dipper: Don't say that either. (10:01)_

Pacifica frowned. The lack of depth and explanation that came with Dipper's advice made it utterly pointless. What was she supposed to gather from what he was saying?

 _Pacifica: Be more specific plz. (10:04)_

 _Pacifica: And how can you hear me? How close are you? (10:04)_

She moved a few steps and set her phone down for just a second before it was buzzing again. She quickly glanced at Mabel to see that she was still very much entertained by the stingrays and small sharks. She'd even made friends with some of the little kids, one of which seemed to be square to try to touch the sea creatures. From the looks of it, Mabel was encouraging him to surmount his fear.

 _Dipper: Mix of lip reading and guessing. (10:04)_

 _Dipper: Don't worry. We're out of sight. (10:04)_

 _Dipper: What I meant was don't sound pretentious or remind her how rich you are every few seconds by making snobby comments. It's not very attractive and, most of the time, are of negative connotation. Try to be positive and happy more times than not. Watch your words. She knows your rich. (10:05)_

As much as it annoyed her, Dipper made a valid point.

 _Pacifica: **You're (10:05)_

 _Dipper: Fuck off (10:05)_

It took a few more minutes before Pacifica was getting ready to pay. The woman behind the counter was kind and quick and before she knew it, she was with Mabel again with two admission tickets in hand. Mabel hadn't noticed her immediately. The brunette was too occupied in encouraging a little boy to pet the stingrays that swam by rather quickly. He stood between her and the edge of the basin, a hand hanging on the edge and followed Mabel's lead whenever she plunged her hand in to touch one of the animals. Her attitude was enthusiastic and electric, drawing more children to her who followed in her example by encouraging the little boy. The whole display was endearing and Pacifica suddenly wanted Mabel to be the mother of her children.

"You did it!" Mabel cheered when the boy's fingers skimmed the wing of a stingray, "Good job! How was it?"

"It was weird, right?" A little girl around the boy's age said.

"Weird…" The boy agreed. "Slimy and hard…"

"Didn't expect that, I bet." Mabel said and flashed a grin that made him blush.

"Look! Another one!" A blond boy on Mabel's right said, pointing at a stingray which had one of its wings sticking out on the surface.

The four of them stuck out their hands and touched it as it passed by. The kids made faces and giggled, excitedly talking about how cool it was and congratulating the little boy on having beaten his fear again.

"I see you've replaced me." Pacifica commented, drawing attention to herself.

"Yes I have!" Mabel declared with a smile. "These are my new friends! Say hello to Nicholas, Worwick, and Alex."

"Hi." Pacifica said and knelt down to their level.

Alex, the girl, blushed and looked away whereas Worwick gave an enthusiastic greeting. Nicholas, on the other hand, gave no response.

"He's deaf in one ear." Mabel explained, "We can leave in a few seconds, his mom just asked me to keep an eye on him while she went to the bathroom."

"That's fine." Pacifica said.

In the end, she didn't have to wait long. Nicholas's mother returned quickly, thanking Mabel. She seemed pleasantly surprised to see that her son had also made friends with two kids they'd never met before. His mother explained that he was a shy boy and was embarrassed by his ear problem which gave him a hard time making friends. With that said, she thanked Mabel again and Mabel and Pacifica left to wander around the aquarium. They saw the three kids a few more times, holding hands, running from one aquarium to another, and stopping to talk to Mabel briefly about what they saw. It was really adorable.

The visit was actually a lot of fun. The attraction had various aquatic species and even a few birds. Some of the animals they had were also reptilians which they kept in a small section on the ground floor. The second floor was a more interactive and educational bit of children. There they were allowed to touch different types of coral and sea shells as well as touch more types of fish. Pacifica and Mabel breezed through that part. Rather, the more interesting part was in the basement floor where they had much larger aquariums with larger sea creatures. The most impressive display was that of nurse sharks. There were actually more species of fish coupled with them but the information they found was generally in their regards. The coolest bit was that a glass tunnel made its way through their aquarium, allowing for different views of the animals.

 _Dipper: Bill just remembered I promised him a stupid date. (11:46)_

 _Dipper: Told him it was still in the works but going to be amazing. (11:46)_

 _Dipper: Thanks for that. (11:46)_

By the end of their visit, it was a little past noon. They had the option to eat at the cafeteria or go out and eat elsewhere. They obviously opted for the latter option and so made their way out back into the crowded streets. Mabel gushed over how cool it was whereas Pacifica bit her tongue and refrained from saying the snobby things that threatened to pour out of her mouth. She struggled to not say anything about the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in Japan. If things worked out, maybe she would get the chance to bring Mabel there and not _have_ to say anything about it.

"But yeah, that was super fun." Mabel said as she lead their step down the sidewalk. "I thought it would take us longer though."

"It _was_ pretty small," And Pacifica winced at her own tone, expecting a reprimanding text from Dipper but she got none. He probably hadn't been able to read her lips because he was probably behind them, "And the information they gave was pretty brief and short."

"We also didn't take pictures." Mabel reckoned. "Think we should have?"

"Sometimes things live better in memories more than they do in pictures." Pacifica said.

"Good point." Mabel acknowledged.

They walked for about ten minutes before reaching the pier. The rides were closed at that hour so that they could be cleaned. That being said, they hadn't gone there to go on the rides but rather to get something to eat at one of the food stands. Mabel forced Pacifica to find a spare table for them and sit there while she fetched their food. She reluctantly obeyed all the while trying to form a plan in her head to pay Mabel back without her knowing. She opted to sneak some cash into her purse later, when she was distracted by something.

While Pacifica sat at the table patiently, twiddling her thumbs, Mabel waited in a rather long line. It took a long while before it was finally her turn to order. As annoyed as she was with the time it took, the emotion vanished instantly when she set her eyes on the gorgeous clerk. She noticed how a large smile appeared on his face as his eyes also fell upon her and it made her blush a bit. With Pacifica away, saving a table, things were likely to go in her favour if she were to start flirting with the man. Little did she know, Dipper and Bill were just around the corner with their eyes fixed on her.

"Shit, we need to stop Mabel from making a move—" Dipper said and made to text Pacifica.

"Hold on, what do you want her to do?" Bill asked, "This is something we can take care of."

Dipper gave him an odd look. He was admittedly a bit worried. "What do you have in mind?"

The man had just given Mabel the order she had placed. They'd chatted casually while he prepared everything for her, neglecting the other customers in the very long and growing line. Bill slipped himself behind a woman who seemed very annoyed with the time it took to get things moving.

"This is so slow!" He complained loudly to grab the woman's attention. "I'm starving over here!"

"You're telling me, boy." The woman huffed and then loudly added: "Maybe if the damn kid did his job we'd have food in our stomachs!" so her voice would carry to the young adult working the food stand.

"Yeah, how about you do your job!?" Bill yelled and he started a chain reaction as such.

"Come on!" Someone else in the line yelled. "I've been waiting for ten fucking minutes!"

"We don't have all day!" Another shouted.

"Let's get a move on!" A person closer to the front snapped.

Just as the line of people began getting very rowdy and were properly directing their anger towards the man working the food stand, Bill slipped away and found his way back to Dipper bearing a proud smile. Some people had begun shouting insults at the guy and maybe that had taken the whole thing just a tad too far, but it encouraged Mabel to bail as quickly as possible without grabbing the man's number. Hopefully, she would abandon the idea of going back for a second try when the line was shorter or non-existent. Just in case, Dipper made quick work of texting Pacifica to get Mabel out of there as soon as they finished eating.

"Nice work." Dipper complimented.

"Am I going to get a _reward_ for doing good?" Bill asked with a lecherous grin.

"If you keep it up, I'll see what I can do." Dipper smirked and kissed his boyfriend quickly.

His eyes fell back onto Mabel and Pacifica. His sister seemed rather uncomfortable with the explosive anger that had started due to the amount of time she had been taking with the only person actually working at the food stand. Knowing Mabel, it was obvious that she was embarrassed and regretted having been so selfish in the heat of the moment. Dipper honestly felt a bit bad for her but he pushed the thought aside.

"I just…I feel so dumb…" Mabel moaned and stuffed her face with fries, "Everyone just got so mad…"

"Don't worry about it." Pacifica insisted, "Some people just get like that sometimes. They're dicks for no good reason."

"I guess…it still bothers me, though." Mabel huffed.

"Tell you what," Pacifica suggested, "Let's get out of here when we finish eating. We could go hang out by the beach. Maybe swim. Just to forget that awkward moment."

"I don't know…" Mabel mumbled, "I kind of wanted to find myself a boyfriend or something for a hot summer romance…time's running out, we're going to be leaving super soon…"

Pacifica huffed and bit her lip. "Does it…" and she paused, giving herself the opportunity to bail on the question she was slowly forming, "Does it have to be…with a guy?"

"Hun?" Mabel asked, convinced she hadn't properly heard what Pacifica said.

"Does it have to be with a guy?" Pacifica asked again, with a bit more conviction though it quickly faltered as she watched Mabel's expression slowly change, "Can't it be…with me?"

Mabel's mouth fell open and it was obvious that she was as confused as she was uncomfortable. "I-I don't understand…" she stuttered.

Pacifica had a plan in mind. She wanted to confess to Mabel on the beach, when the sun was setting. She thought it fit the brunette's romantic tastes better than on the pier at noon. The setting wasn't special, it was crowded with people, and, quite frankly, it just wasn't beautiful. And yet, they'd had so much fun at the aquarium and Pacifica was getting really annoyed with Mabel constantly flinging herself at men that it just sort of slipped out. Dipper had told her the sunset idea was better. She knew it was better. But it was too late now.

"The—I…" Pacifica stumbled but then took a deep breath, organising her thoughts and words, "The reason it was complicated to tell you that I like girls is because I like you. I _really_ like you, Mabel."

Her mouth fell open in shock and her eyes widened, displaying her surprise. It was then that Pacifica was struck with the awful feeling that she had made a big mistake. She should have kept her mouth shut. Where Dipper said Mabel would be thoughtful and careful, she wore her surprise and discomfort on her sleeve.

"Is that…is that why you've been ruining my chances with some of the guys I met?" Mabel asked as a frown steadily spread on her face, "You were…jealous?"

Pacifica lowered her gaze guiltily. She didn't answer the question but Mabel knew what the silence meant and it honestly made her angry. "Please don't be mad…" Pacifica finally said.

"I—" Mabel started too quickly but then stopped herself. She took a deep breath and thought things over hastily before saying: "I'm not hungry anymore. I need some time to think."

With that said, she stood and left. Dipper and Bill who had been watching the scene unfold from afar soon ran to the table when the coast was clear, confused on what had just happened.

"You were wrong." Pacifica said to Dipper, "She wasn't as gentle as you said she would be."

"What? What happened?" Dipper asked, glancing in the direction his sister had left.

"She basically rejected me." Pacifica said and slowly stood from where she sat, "I'm also pretty sure she hates me."

"That's stupid!" Bill said, "Shooting Star doesn't _hate_ people!"

"You know what they say; there's a first for everything." Pacifica huffed and began walking in a different direction.

"Wha – wait!" Dipper called, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to find myself some hotel room." Pacifica said, pausing her step, "Then I'll look up ways to get back to Gravity Falls and probably just leave."

"You can't—!" Dipper tried, "The vacation's not done—"

Pacifica only smirked bitterly before turning her heels and leaving. Things had gone terribly wrong all too fast and Dipper wasn't exactly sure how to go about fixing them. This wasn't what was meant to happen. Or rather, it wasn't _how_ it meant to happen.


	7. Chapter 7

The rest of the day had been utterly ruined and Mabel had locked herself away in her room. Dipper tried to get her to come out and talk about what had happened with Pacifica but she refused. She didn't even bother to come out for supper later. As worried as he was over his sister, the brunet was also very concerned with Pacifica. When they'd gotten back to the rented beach house, they found her room empty of her belongings. He sent her texts just to make sure she was okay but received no reply.

The next morning started off the same way the previous day had ended. Mabel's door was still shut and she refused to see Dipper whereas Pacifica still neglected to answer any of his texts. To make matters worse, Bill was also getting restless. He had been fine with spending the rest of the day yesterday doing nothing but he wasn't in the mood to do so again. He was very much over the unrequited love drama and wanted things to speed along.

"I don't get why you just can't go talk to her." The blond whined.

"She doesn't want to." Dipper groaned in frustration; this was the third time they were having the same conversation.

"Sometimes people say stuff they don't mean because they're upset." Bill pointed out, "I think she wants to talk about it."

"Well it's not like I can just bust down the door!" Dipper snapped. "So I'll wait for her to come to me instead."

"I'm getting the feeling you don't want to talk to her about what happened." The demon mused suspiciously.

He wasn't wrong. Honestly, Dipper blamed himself a lot for what happened. He shouldn't have pushed Pacifica to confess her feelings and he should have known Mabel would have reacted the way she did. And yet, the brunet still couldn't actually believe what had happened, happened. He had seen his sister reject women gently without ever displaying disgust for their homosexuality because it was something that never bothered her. Why had it been different with Pacifica?

"I'm not in the mood to sit around and do nothing all day." Bill declared, "If you don't go talk to her right now, I'll make you."

"And how are you going to do that?" Dipper snorted, unimpressed by the threat.

Bill grinned and before he could regret his decision, a blue portal opened beneath Dipper's feet and he fell. He landed seconds later in Mabel's room, luckily having been too surprised to utter a horrified scream. That would have been most embarrassing.

"D…Dipper…?" Mabel asked, perplexed by how he had gotten in her room so abruptly.

Dipper groaned inwardly. He wasn't sure he was ready to have this conversation with Mabel but he had no choice anymore. He'd definitely give Bill a piece of his mind later.

"Hi, Mabel." He said awkwardly, "You're awake…good…"

"What are you doing here?" Mabel asked and she pushed herself up, "How did you get in?"

"I sort of just…fell in." He answered sheepishly, "Anyways, I came to talk."

"I'm not in the mood." Mabel said and she fell back on her bed, tucking the covers over her head.

"Mabel…" Dipper started with a sigh. He sat on the edge of her bed and pondered whether he should rip the blankets from her, "You've been in a sour mood since yesterday. I'm worried."

"I don't want to talk about it." Mabel repeated.

"Pacifica hasn't even come back yet." Dipper added and he noticed how his sister stiffened, "I've sent her texts but she's not answering any of them. Aren't you worried?"

She didn't answer.

"Come on, Mabel." Dipper urged, "Don't start ignoring me too. Tell me what happened."

It wasn't like he actually needed to know though. He had been there, had witnessed the train wreck of Pacifica's hasty confession. However, as far as Dipper was concerned, Mabel didn't know he and Bill had tried helping. He didn't know if he was ever going to tell Mabel whether it be sooner or later, but it would probably end up being later.

"I…" She started and it was evident she was struggling with her choice of words, "I don't want to talk about it."

"Mabel…" Dipper sighed again.

"I really don't, Dipper." Mabel insisted.

"If you don't want to talk about it now, fine," Dipper finally conceded, "But you need to get out of bed and hang out with us."

"Dipper…" Mabel groaned.

"No buts." He declared and tugged on the blankets to uncover his sister, "It's either you come get drunk with us or we talk about what happened."

"Get drunk?" Mabel repeated and glanced at the clock on her bedside table, "It's barely eleven o'clock."

"You know what they say," he grinned, "It's five PM somewhere. Besides, at the rate we're drinking the booze Bill bought, we won't be finished by the time we have to vacate the house."

His twin hesitated but Mabel ultimately pushed herself from her bed and stood akimbo. Dipper smiled and led the way to the living room where Bill impatiently waited for them. He beamed when he saw them.

"Everything's fixed, right?" He asked.

"No, not at all." Dipper admitted and Bill's smile fell, "Some things just can't be rushed but we're going to do the next best thing."

They took out all the booze from the fridge and set them on the living room table. There was a considerable amount still left and Dipper was sure they would never finish any of it unless they got smashed at least once before leaving Newport. Mabel was the first one to make a move. She grabbed one of the budlight coolers and chugged it, grimacing at the fizz's sting in her throat. Dipper followed in her step, flashing her a grin once he finished his.

They drank and drank and slowly the relative silence they had started out in became muffled with ruckus. Mabel had fetched her Ipod from her room and hooked it up to her laptop so as to play the music loudly. They danced, laughed, and drank some more until they forgot what pushed them to get so wasted so early in the morning. None of them had even eaten anything before they had gotten started adding to the alcohol's potency and instigating some of their shenanigans.

"I'm starving!" Bill complained as he looked through the refrigerator for anything to devour but there was nothing he found adequate, "Oh my God, there's nothing to eat!"

"Oh my God you're becoming human! I fucking knew it!" Dipper gasped, suddenly overcome with intense woe and despair, "I knew it! That knife stabbing through your hand meant nothing!"

"Bill got stabbed!?" Mabel screamed, having misheard most of what her twin had said. By God they were drunk out of their minds. She tried running to the kitchen to find the demon in question but tripped on the carpet floor. Rather than get up, Mabel opted to just stay there.

"Wait – what!?" Dipper cried, "Bill got stabbed!?"

"Bill don't die!" Mabel yelled.

"Who's going to die?" Bill asked, peaking out of the kitchen but then losing his balance and falling into the hallway.

"You are!" Dipper answered.

"Oh no." And he sounded genuinely concerned but that was probably because of the booze, "What did I do?"

"I don't know." Mabel said, her voice muffled by the carpet, "You should ask the person stabbing you."

"I'm getting stabbed!?" Bill asked, horrified.

"Oh God, no!" Dipper cried as he fell from the sofa and to the floor. He was on the verge of tears. "This is terrible."

"You're telling me." Bill said as he rolled over to them, "But being stabbed doesn't hurt so bad."

"Wait, you're not even bleeding." Mabel remarked when Bill stopped next to her.

"Internal bleeding!" Dipper concluded hopelessly, "His oragans – organas…his inner body parts are going to shut down! Worst end to a relationship _ever_!"

"Are you sure that's how that works?" Mabel asked.

"Of course I am!" Dipper moaned in sorrow, "I'm the _smart_ one!"

Their drunken tomfooleries continued with a farewell toast to Bill. They drank more coolers and beers in memory of him – or rather in future memory of him – but quickly got distracted by something else and, consequently, forgot about the demon's supposedly assured death.

A car passed in front of the house and Mabel had suddenly been convinced it was Pacifica. She tried fleeing and hiding, declaring she wasn't emotionally prepared to face her yet and asked Dipper and Bill to help her. In their drunken stupor, the two decided the best course of action was to barricade the door. They took the time to move the cans and bottles of beer and coolers from the living room table before dragging it to the front door. Mabel then claimed the fortification wouldn't hold and so Dipper and Bill found more furniture to pile in front of the door. But as soon as they finished, all three had forgotten why they had initially barred the door and stood there wondering what their motivations had been.

They hadn't been thinking about it for more than a minute when a green ice cream truck passed in front of the house as well. Bill then remembered his hunger and ran to the window, clawing at it as he yelled for the ice cream truck to come back. When it didn't listen, he opened a portal and jumped in, coming back out soon after with three huge tubs of ice cream. At that point, the twins were too drunk to care or even notice that he had just stolen food.

Rather than eat the frozen treat with a spoon, they opted to use their hands. When their fingers got too cold, they stuck their heads in their respective tubs and promptly made a mess of themselves. Upon noticing that their noses, cheeks, and foreheads were covered in ice cream, they began to fling what was left of their food at each other. The mess they made covered the walls, the ceiling, the carpet, and the furniture barricading the door.

Their supply of alcohol finally ran out by three in the afternoon at which point they were riding out their drunken state. They sat on the floor in a circle, spinning a can of beer that was still full but none of them had even noticed. They weren't actually playing a game either, they were just spinning the bottle for fun. The simplest and strangest things always became the most entertaining and captivating when in an intoxicated state.

"I'm feeling sick." Bill groaned after a moment.

"Don't throw up on the floor." Dipper warned and dropped to the ground tiredly.

"No, I mean _sick_ sick not drunk sick." Bill said.

"A kiss cures everything!" Mabel declared and she pulled Bill into a kiss by snatching the collar of his shirt.

The demon stiffened, too surprised to react, but the kiss was over as soon as it started. He stared at Mabel dumbly and then glanced at Dipper. He vaguely recalled a deal wherein he wasn't allowed to get intimate with other humans. He wondered if they had counted. It wasn't like he _instigated_ it.

"I was strangely not bothered by that." Dipper declared.

"I'm getting weird threesome-esque incestuous vibes from that comment." Bill said.

"Ew, no." Dipper said and sat back up, "I guess I just don't mind sharing stuff with my sister."

"Don't objectify me!" Bill scowled and Dipper winked at him.

"See, now I'm confused." Mabel said and fell on her back next to Dipper, "I like guys and kissing Bill was pleasant."

"I'm not sure how I feel about that declaration." Bill admitted and shifted awkwardly.

"What's to be confused about?" Dipper asked, ignoring the blond even as he crawled to his other side and laid down.

"Well, I don't get why I want to kiss Pacifica so bad." She said, "I didn't really want to kiss Bill but I still liked it."

"That's 'cause I'm the best!" Bill exclaimed.

"You sure are." Dipper smirked.

"I never wanted to kiss a girl before." Mabel continued in a mumble, "I never thought a girl was even attractive the same way I think most guys are."

"Maybe you should try kissing a girl." Dipper suggested and plopped his head on Mabel's shoulder. He was in a very awkward and uncomfortable position but was too drunk to care.

"You think?" She asked, "What if I don't like it?"

Bill let out a loud yawn.

"Then you don't like it." Dipper said simply and his eyes were starting to feel heavy.

"Which girl should I kiss?" Mabel asked.

"Pacifica! Choose Pacifica!" Bill cheered though it wasn't as energetic as it should have been.

"But she has a crush on me." Mabel mumbled, her cheeks burning red, "That would make things awkward…"

"If you kiss another girl, she'll get mad." Bill reasoned and snuggled up to Dipper, "Besides, you said you wanted to kiss Pacifica."

"Do you think that makes me a lesbianism?" She asked.

"You mean lesbian?" Dipper laughed.

"Yeah." Mabel said and it was getting increasingly hard for her to keep her eyes open.

"I don't think so." Dipper said.

"Then am I like you?" Mabel asked.

"I don't think so either." Dipper mused though he was still too drunk to explain what he meant coherently.

"That's confusing." Mabel mumbled.

"Sometimes, a girl likes a girl." Bill said drowsily, "That doesn't always make her a lesbian or a bisexual."

"What does it make her then?" Mabel asked and her eyes were shut.

"Special." Dipper breathed before falling asleep.

They slept in the mess they had made while drunk. The afternoon slowly faded to night and, somehow, they only woke up the next day.


	8. Chapter 8

Never had Dipper, Mabel, nor Bill ever suffered a hangover as terrible as the one they were forced to endure that morning. It felt like their heads were on the verge of exploding and to make matters worse, their bodies were very sore due to the place they had spent the night. Between the three of them, Bill was the first to make a dash for the toilet. He puked out what little contents were in his stomach. Dipper had felt very nauseous upon hearing the sickening sounds leave the bathroom but the most he did was gag. Mabel, on the other hand, had been triggered by the sounds and so had ran to the other bathroom shortly after.

Dipper sat in the living room, head in hands and brow furrowed together in concentration as he struggled to control his urge to vomit and build the strength to stand. He hardly remembered what had happened the day before. They had all been so drunk. The state of the living room left clues as to what shenanigans they had gotten involved in, so whatever he couldn't remember could be deduced from its state. For some reason, the door was barricaded with furniture Dipper knew he would never be able to move with both Mabel and Bill's help. It left to wonder how they had managed to do such a thing in their inebriated state. Three empty tubs of ice cream laid on the ground and, judging from the stains on the walls, ceiling, and furniture, what they hadn't eaten had been used as ammunition for a food battle. The thought of ice cream made Dipper want to throw up. But there were a few questions he had to ask himself in regards to it: where and when had they gotten three huge tubs of the frozen treat? Had it been before or after they barricaded themselves in? If it was the latter, then the question of how was at play.

The brunet pushed himself from the ground with a terrible groan. His body cricked and cracked painfully until he was standing up right at which point he struggled to maintain his balance. He stumbled to the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water which he quickly swallowed down. His throat had been so dry.

Dipper stayed there for a moment, his hands pressed on either side of the sink and his head hanging lowly between his shoulders. He couldn't remember much but he knew Mabel had told him something important before they – or at the very least _he_ – blacked out. The confession was just at the tip of his thoughts but perfectly out of reach, which made things all the more frustrating. It had to do with Pacifica. It was important. It was—

Forgotten.

He couldn't remember no matter how hard he tried. Either the memory would return on its own or he would never remember. And though a stirring in Dipper's heart told him he shouldn't abandon so quickly his struggle to remember, he ignored it and filled two more glasses with water. There were two other drunks he had to take care of. Remember yesterday's terrible mistakes could wait an additional moment.

He walked to his bathroom first where Bill was hunched over the toilet. He had just flushed its content before Dipper had walked in and the latter was grateful because he knew he wouldn't have been able to stomach looking at something so disgusting. He gently tapped the side of the glass on Bill's head to grab his attention. The demon glanced lazily in his direction and took the glass of water. He gulped the liquid down in mere seconds.

"Uugh…this is the worst." He groaned.

"Yeah." Dipper agreed as he went to the cabinets to fetch painkillers. "It'll wear off eventually."

"I'm starving but the thought of food makes me—" he couldn't even finish his sentence before he was puking in the toilet bowl again. Dipper held his breath and screwed his eyes shut, willing his nausea away. "And the kicker," Bill continued when he flushed the toilet again, "Is that my head feels heavy and my nose feels stuffy."

"You're getting sick again?" Dipper asked worriedly.

"I think." Bill confessed and pressed a hand to his forehead exhaustedly. "I think I teleported around a bit when we were drunk."

"Damn." Dipper huffed, "Well, you're confined to the bed for the rest of the day, understood?"

"Aye, aye, Captain." He groaned and gagged but, thankfully, didn't vomit again.

Dipper swallowed a painkiller before bringing a few to Mabel and heading to the other bathroom.

"Hey, Pine Tree?" Bill asked, stopping Dipper momentarily. His face was scrunched as though he remembered something he couldn't quite believe or wasn't even entirely sure was real, "Do you…do you remember Shooting Star…kissing me?"

Dipper's eyes widened in remembrance. He vaguely remembered something like that. His sister had said something before grabbing the blond and kissing him. Then she had said something about… about…

He couldn't remember.

"That doesn't count as cheating, does it?" The demon asked.

"Not this time." Dipper assured, "Now go back to bed. I'll bring you more water and a puking bowl in a minute."

"Okay…" He groaned.

"And change your clothes." Dipper added and left.

He found Mabel in the same position he had found Bill. She seemed to be doing better, she wasn't puking anymore, rather she was knelt by and leaned against the toilet with her eyes closed. Dipper wasn't sure if she had fallen asleep or not.

"Nnngh." She groaned before he could nudge her, "I feel like shit…"

"You and the rest of us." Dipper said and gave her the pulls and water.

She finished the two things quickly, hanging the empty glass back to her brother.

"Do you remember anything?" Dipper asked.

"Um…" Mabel mused, "Bill got ice cream somehow…and we ate a lot of it…"

Dipper concluded the demon must have teleported to fetch the frozen treat. That use of power had likely been what had gotten him sick again since he had barely had the time to recuperate since he had last fallen ill.

"And then…" Mabel continued, frowning in concentration, "Bill got stabbed…or, we thought he did…"

"I think I remember that too now that you mention it." Dipper nodded.

"What do you remember?" Mabel asked and pushed herself up.

"You kissed Bill." Dipper said and he couldn't resist the smile that appeared on his face before Mabel had had a chance to react. He already knew how she should respond and it amused him.

"I-I did what!?" She exclaimed too loudly. It gave Dipper a head ache.

"Quieter…" he ushered.

"Dipper—" Mabel panicked, "Dipper, I'm so, so, _so_ sorry! I don't know what came over me…I wasn't thinking – but it didn't mean anything—"

"Mabel, calm down." Dipper chuckled, "I don't care. It's fine."

"R…really?" Mabel asked, "Because I would be pretty angry in your place."

"Well, last I checked, Bill's still gay and I'm the only one between the two of us with a penis." Dipper said, "So there's no real chance he'll leave me for you or for any other drunk girl that might kiss him in the future."

"I still would have been mad if you accidentally kissed Pacif—" Mabel stopped herself before finishing. Her eyes widened in horror at what she had been saying. And suddenly, Dipper remembered what his twin had confessed to him in her drunken stupor. "I…I didn't mean—"

Mabel had said she wanted to kiss Pacifica. That meant Mabel was in love with Pacifica – or, at the very least, had feelings for her.

"You like her." Dipper mumbled and he was taken aback when Mabel seemed more dismayed. "You wanted to kiss h—"

"Stop!" She snapped, her hands balled into fists. Dipper finally noticed she was shaking.

"Mabel…"

"I was drunk. I didn't mean it." She insisted. "I don't like girls like that…"

"But you like Pacifica." Dipper persisted.

"I-I don't!" Mabel argued but she didn't even believe herself. "I…I don't…"

Dipper took a step closer and placed a soft touch on her arm. "Hey…" he said softly, "It's okay to like girls, you know…"

"I know it is," She retorted quickly, "But I don't like _girls_. I know I don't."

"Then how do you feel about Pacifica?" Dipper asked, "Is she just some friend to you? Is she just some other lesbian, omnisexual, whatever, you reject every other day of the week? Because, if she is, why did you treat her so differently when she confessed?"

Mabel's round eyes fell to the ground and she bit her lower lip. Millions of emotions, thoughts, and feelings were crossing through her mind, that much was obvious by the face she made.

"I…I don't know." She uttered, lost.

"If she found a girlfriend tomorrow that wasn't you," Dipper tried, "Would you be happy for her or would you be angry?"

Mabel thought the question through carefully. When she found the answer, she didn't dare speak it, but Dipper didn't need to hear it to know.

"You would be angry." He said, "And what if you got the chance to kiss her right now? Would you do it? Would your stomach fill with butterflies?"

"…yes…" She answered in a whisper.

"So you like Pacifica." Dipper summarised, "You like her the same way I like Bill."

"But I'm not gay!" Mabel insisted, "I'm not a lesbian, I'm not bisexual, I'm not pansexual, omnisexual, biromantic, or whatever else I'm forgetting. I know I'm not."

"You're heterosexual." Dipper concluded.

"But how can I be?" Mabel asked, defeated, "How can I be if I like her? If I like…"

"I don't know if I told you this while we were drunk, I'm an idiot if I didn't," he started, "But some girls like just one other girl. That doesn't always mean they fit one of the many labels of the LGBTQ community. You can still identify as heterosexual, Mabel. You can also identify as nothing and decide to ignore labels because fuck 'em. But there's nothing wrong with you."

Mabel gave a small smile.

"There's nothing wrong with you." Dipper repeated and smiled as well, "Remember? That's what you told me when I came out to you. I'm sure you said the same thing to your queer friends back home when they came out to you too."

"Yeah. Thanks." She said genuinely and she was calmer now.

"So what are you going to do about Pacifica?" Dipper asked. "Are you going to try out a relationship with her? See how it goes?"

"Maybe…" Mabel said, "But I don't know if she'll want to. She seemed really hurt…I don't know if now's the good time to go talk to her."

"If you want, I can talk to her first and give you a feel for everything." Her brother suggested.

"I don't know…" Mabel said.

"I'm going to go find her anyways." Dipper admitted, "She still hasn't answered any of my texts and I'm worried."

Her eyes widened with concern. "Okay." She conceded, "I'll go with you."

"Nope." Dipper refused. "Someone has to stay here and take care of Bill. He got sick again."

"But how are you even going to leave the house?" Mabel asked. "I remember seeing the barricade we made. No way you're moving all that on your own…no offence."

"None taken." Dipper said, "I'll use the garage door."

"Then text me." Mabel said.

With that, their conversation ended. Dipper fetched a puking bowl for Bill and another glass of water. Then he jumped into the shower and changed his clothes, tossing the dirty ones into a random corner in the bathroom. When he was ready to go, he left by passing through his room where he found Mabel sitting on his bed with Bill. They watched TV; the demon's head rested against her shoulder and he seemed to be sleeping.

"Text me." Mabel reminded as Dipper left.

He opted to walk rather than take his car. For one thing, Dipper was still very much hungover and didn't trust himself behind the wheel in his current state. So he grabbed his shades and threw them on his face before leaving through the garage. The sun was still blinding and inspired the beginning of a new headache regardless of his darkly tinted sunglasses. He paused for a moment in the hopes of getting used to the intense brightness accompanied with scorching heat, but it only worsened.

Dipper followed the sidewalk and walked to town. There were no guarantees that Pacifica hadn't already left and returned to Gravity Falls but his gut told him she hadn't. Though she could have easily caught a bus to bring her back home, Pacifica wasn't the type to borrow such a mode of transportation for multiple reasons. She likely would have gotten one of her personal drivers to come pick her up and said driver probably couldn't have come right away for a multitude of reasons.

With all of that said, there was only one place Dipper could fathom she had gone to while waiting for someone to fetch her from Newport. It didn't take him long to reach the fanciest hotel in town – one he had spotted while they drove by upon first arriving. It was supposedly owned by some famous English chef Dipper had never heard of and he knew it was one of the likeliest places for Pacifica to be. He walked into the establishment and he suddenly felt very embarrassed. The inside was very luxurious and Dipper felt ridiculous in his jeans and t-shirt. The staff didn't help either what with their disapproving looks and quiet scorns. He walked to the front desk hastily.

"How can I help you?" The clerk asked stiffly albeit politely.

"I'm looking for a friend and I think she might have booked a room here recently." Dipper said, "Her name is Pacifica Northwest."

The man looked him over suspiciously, like Dipper was on the verge of pulling some prank or something. He, nonetheless, looked through the database on his computer, if only after disapproving of him the same way the rest of the staff had. "Yes. She booked a Neptune suite two days ago. She's supposed to book out in a few hours." He said.

"Could you call her down, please?" Dipper asked, "This is really important."

The man sighed, evidently annoyed but unjustly so, in Dipper's opinion. The lobby was literally empty and no clients seemed to arriving let alone leaving. The clerk had nothing to do other than help him.

"Alright," he said and grabbed the phone to his left, "What's your name?"

Dipper thought of saying his actual name, but he thought that, maybe, Pacifica wouldn't see him if she knew it was him.

"Mabel Pines." He said and justified his peculiar name by adding: "My parents really wanted a girl."

The man rolled his eyes. He dialed a number and waited for Pacifica to pick up on the other end. When she did, the man told her one Mabel Pines requested to see her in the lobby. Dipper was thankful he had omitted the _mister_. He hung up shortly after and informed the brunet that Pacifica would reach the lobby shortly.

He made his way to the elevators and waited for Pacifica. The area was more private and mostly closed off, thus things were more private and secluded if the blonde decided to make a scene. The doors opened with a ding soon after he had gotten there, revealing a very started Pacifica. She stared at Dipper, shocked, and glanced around before addressing him.

"Where's Mabel?" She asked.

"At the house, taking care of Bill." Dipper said.

"What happened?" She asked.

"We got really drunk yesterday. And then Bill used his powers which got him sick again." Dipper explained briefly, "But that's not why I'm here."

"Why then?" Pacifica asked, folding her arms over her chest as she waited for an explanation.

"I came to see how you were." Dipper said. "I was getting worried, you weren't answering my texts."

"I wasn't in the mood." Pacifica said dryly, "And I'm still not."

"Look, I get you're upset," Dipper said, "But the fact that you came down here thinking you were going to talk to Mabel means that you want to talk to her, right?"

"I want to see if I can salvage our friendship." The blonde admitted, "Thanks for ruining that, by the way."

"You'll be thanking me for a whole other reason later." Dipper snorted much to the other's confusion.

"What?"

"Look, Mabel wants to talk to you too." Dipper explained, "The only reason I'm here and she's not is because she wasn't sure if you would be angry with her. She noticed that she hurt your feelings and she's sorry."

"So what do you want?" Pacifica asked.

"I want you to come back to the house with me and talk to her." Dipper said, "But before you talk, you need to listen to what she has to say. Okay?"

* * *

They returned to the beach house and Pacifica made no comment of the fact they were entering through the garage. She did, however, make a face and it was clear she had questions. Dipper saw no point in answering them just yet. She would see for herself when they walked by the living room.

They passed through the kitchen and went into the corridor. The TV was playing loudly and betrayed what show Bill and Mabel had opted to watch. The two also made comments of the like: "That dress looks terrible on her! She should try one with a heart neckline!" and "She should be choosing her wedding dress for herself, not the peanut gallery! This is _her_ special day!" And while Dipped snickered at the commentaries, Pacifica's eyes fell upon the utterly trashed living room.

"What the hell?" She asked, gesturing the barricade at the front door.

"We got really, _really_ drunk yesterday." Dipper explained with a sheepish smile, "We're still not quite sure why we barricaded the door…or how we got the ice cream that is now mostly splattered on the walls and ceiling."

"Aren't you supposed to vacate the house tomorrow?" She asked.

"Yes." Dipper answered.

"And how are you going to get everything cleaned up like nothing ever happened by then?" Pacifica asked.

"I have no idea." He admitted.

"Dipper?" Mabel called from his room, "Is that you?"

"No. It's a serial stabber." Dipper joked as he walked towards the bedroom.

"Oh. Then stay away from Bill." She said. "Why didn't you text me?"

He gestured for Pacifica to wait where she was as he walked into his room.

"Could you come here for a second?" The brunet asked.

"Say Yes to the Dress is about to restart." She whined, "I want to know if Deana is going to take her father's pick or if she's going to listen to Samantha and take the one she really wants."

"Yeah, and don't get me started on the Holmes drama." Bill continued and Dipper was happy to find he sounded much less sick, "Did you know Sherlock is actually a girl's name?"

"Mabel, please?" He insisted, "This is important."

"Fill me in when I come back." She said to Bill as she begrudgingly left the bed.

"Will do." He nodded and turned his gaze back to the TV.

The brunette followed her twin into the hall. She had started asking if what he wanted to discuss with her had something to do with Pacifica but her voice trailed off upon seeing the other in question. Mabel's cheeks flushed pink instantly and she stiffened unsure of what to do. Pacifica had a similar reaction. Both their breaths as they waited for something to happen.

"Well," Dipper said and coughed, breaking a bit of the tension, "I'll leave you two to it."

And before either could think to object, he went back to his room and closed the door. In the silence that veiled them, they heard the sound of Bill's voice muffle the TV by proclaiming: "If you're thinking of having sex right now, the answer is no. this show is more important to me." which helped relieve a bit of the tension by pulling a laugh from the two girls.

"Mabel…" Pacifica tried.

"Wait!" The brunette interrupted quickly, "Can I…Can I go first?"

"Okay."

Mabel sighed deeply. She considered her words carefully before speaking them. "I know what I did was hurtful. I'm sorry." She said, "I…you caught me off guard and I panicked."

"You panicked?" The blonde repeated.

"I…I like boys." Mabel tried to explain.

"That's fine." Pacifica insisted, "I get that, I just—"

"Just, wait. Please." The former requested softly. Pacifica nodded and waited again. "I like boys. I know I do. I also know I don't like girls…but I like you. I don't know what that makes me, and I honestly don't really care anymore. I just know I like you the same way I liked all of my previous boyfriends."

Pacifica's mouth fell open and her blush darkened drastically and took over her entire body. "R…really?" she stuttered.

Mabel nodded. "And I don't know if I screwed everything up," She finished, "But if I didn't, I would really like to try dating you."

There was a long moment of silence. The murmur of the television and the faint noise of cars passing in front of the house seemed entirely nonexistent. It was like the universe had shut down and there was only them. Then, everything was in motion again when Pacifica took Mabel's hands and intertwined their fingers together.

"I would really like that." She smiled.

A smile beamed on Mabel's face and tears of happiness welled in her eyes. She laughed her embarrassment away and fell into Pacifica's embrace. The blonde held her and never had she felt happier than in that very moment.

"So you'll come back?" Mabel asked, "To the house I mean. I know there's barely a day left but…"

"I will." Pacifica assured, "I'll just call my driver and tell him to go back home."

"You might be spending the rest of the day cleaning up, though." Mabel added, glancing in the living room's direction.

"No, don't worry." She said, "I'll call over a cleaning team and pay them to take care of everything so we can enjoy what little time we still have left here."

"You don't have to—"

"I want to." Pacifica insisted, "Now what do you want to do."

Mabel opened her mouth to answer but shut it immediately. Her glance fell to her feet and she twiddled her thumbs together. It took a moment for Pacifica to piece her answer together.

"You want to go watch Say Yes to the Dress?" Pacifica smirked.

"Maybe…"

"Then come on." Pacifica said and took her hand, "Before it finishes."

They marched into the room and jumped on the queen size bed, forcing Dipper and Bill to make space for them. The demon was quick to give a recap on what had happened wherein Deana had followed her heart and John, Sherlock's husband, had intervened and got Mycroft to shut her mouth in regards to the dress her sister was struggling to pick. Neither he nor Dipper asked any questions in regards to the conversation they had had outside. It wasn't any of their business. They did, however, notice how the girls held hands and sat very close together.

But neither said anything.


	9. Chapter 9

If it weren't for the men Pacifica hired to clean and rearrange the house like had been before they had ruined it while drunk, they would have spent the whole night scrubbing the gunk from the walls and ceiling. There was no telling if they would have been able to replace the furniture back to where it had once been. The men had still taken a few hours – a grand total of five – and considering they had worked after hours, the cost had climbed to something completely outrageous. But it was only pocket money for Pacifica who was too busy being happy to care.

Thus when the old woman who had loaned them the house in the first place swung by the next morning to evaluate the state of everything, she was rather pleased, unaware of what it had looked like mere hours ago. She was meant to collect the set of keys she had given the group before leaving but seeing as she was busy with other clients, she asked them to simply drop them off in her mail box. When the old woman left, they got to packing their things.

Bill was no longer sick. He had actually recuperated fully an hour before they had gone to sleep the day before. He helped collect his and Dipper's scattered clothes which they then shoved messily into the luggage they shared together. It was the first of their things to end up in the car. Next were Pacifica's things which she had more people fetch from the fancy hotel in which she had spent two days. After came the beach supplies and, lastly, Mabel's things.

"I kind of feel like the last half of our trip was wasted." Mabel admitted. "I mean, we haven't gone to the beach at all during the last three days."

"You want to go for a final swim?" Dipper suggested.

"You sure the lady won't mind?" Mabel asked.

"I don't know." He said, "But I don't really care either. As long as it's fine with everyone else."

Both Pacifica and Bill shrugged in indifference. It was settled as such. They switched into their bathing suits one last time and ran to the beach. The sand burned their feet and they ran faster to reach the ocean so as to cool the stinging pain. Then they swam and played, throwing water at one another and pushing each other into waves. The laughs they uttered attracted the attention of the group of boys that had generally shared that portion of the beach with them. They mostly eyed Pacifica and Mabel – though one of them did give Bill a quick once over that had Dipper fuming.

"We thought you ladies had left." The one that looked like Mermando said.

"Nope." Pacifica said and looked at Mabel fondly, "We're still here."

"Would you like to join us?" He asked, "We were thinking of playing beach volley ball."

"No thanks." Mabel grinned and took Pacifica's hand. Before leaving, she leaned in to whisper: "You might want to tell your friend over there to stop checking out my brother's boyfriend before he snaps."

"You're so cute when you're jealous." Bill laughed at Dipper.

Dipper said nothing and simply continued to glare at the guy until the group left. Then they resumed their fun.

They had only intended on staying an hour or two – maybe three, at most. However, morning had gone and the sun was setting by the time they had finally decided to leave the water. The sand wasn't scorching hot anymore so rather than run, they walked back to the car and slowly dried. By the time they got back to the house, they were still mostly wet and had to pull out the towels to dry up enough to pull on their clothes.

"Ready to go now?" Dipper asked everyone as they huddled around the car.

Mabel and Pacifica exchanged glances and nodded. "Yes."

They hopped in the vehicle, Dipper at the wheel with Bill by his side and Mabel and Pacifica in the back. Neither girl sat in the middle seat but when Dipper glanced in the rear-view mirror, he saw their hands clasped together then and the lovesick smiles plastered on their faces. It was really adorable to see. He was happy for his sister.

And so they pulled out of the driveway and made a quick b-line to the old woman's house to drop off the set of keys. Then they drove around town and looked at everything one last time. Summer was ending but a plethora of people still walked the sidewalks and boardwalk as the sky went from orange to black with the setting sun. They rolled down the windows to smell the sea salt in the air mixed with the fried food multiple food stands were preparing.

Dipper, quite frankly, felt nostalgic. Summer had always felt like an eternal thing to him – as strange as it was. It had started to feel even longer when he enrolled in university because the school year was much shorter and began a week or two later than what he was used to – or had been used to. And yet, in that moment, the realization of the warm season, his favourite season, ending was real. The memories and adventures he had made were coming to a quick end. And to think that nearly four months ago, he and Bill had only just become friends with benefits. Even more recent than that, they had started _dating_.

The world might not have been ending this summer, but it had still been crazy and adventurous in its own way.

"Hey…" Bill mumbled as he glanced at the Ferris wheel on the boardwalk, "I just remembered something…"

"What?" Dipper asked.

"Weren't you supposed to take me out on a date?" Bill asked.

Dipper stiffened. He had completely forgotten. He ignored the giggles from the back seat and focused on coming up with an excuse, a plan, or just anything, really. "I…uh…" he stuttered dumbly as he thought, "That…that's exactly why we're still downtown!" he then hit the breaks and spun the car into a parking spot, "We-we're going to go on our very special date! Right now!"

"You are?" Pacifica asked, doubtfully.

"How's it going to be special?" Bill asked and glanced at the boardwalk. "I think carnival dates are pretty lame…"

"I-it's going to be special because…because…" he mumbled, looking around desperately for anything to answer the question, "b-because it's going to be a double date!"

"Oh my _god_." Mabel giggled.

"With who?" Bill asked.

"Mabel and Pacifica, of course!" Dipper answered nervously. He hoped the girls would play along.

"And how is that special?" The demon asked.

"Um…well, it's special because it's unusual." Dipper said, "Who goes on a double date as their first date, right? The answer is us. Because we're unusual. It's our thing."

The girls laughed in the back and if it wouldn't have betrayed the façade he was hastily trying to build, Dipper would have punched them. Meanwhile, Bill mulled over what had been said pensively. Dipper hoped that, at the very least, he just wouldn't get mad.

"Okay." He said and opened the car door.

"Okay?" The brunet repeated in disbelief.

"Yeah." Bill said, "Unusual is our thing. I like that. So let's go be unusual."

Dipper smiled triumphantly and jumped out of the car. Mabel and Pacifica followed suit, content with watching the scene unfold with amused grins plastered on their faces. They followed as Dipper led the way to a restaurant where he had claimed to book a reservation. Unfortunately, no matter how much he winked and mouthed pleas, the employee looking through the reservation list refused to play along.

"I'm sorry, sir," he said, "You're name's not on the list."

Pacifica, taking pity on him, finally stepped in when Dipper was just about to give up. "You might want to check your eyesight." She said, slipping the man a fifty, "I see his name right here."

The employee stealthily took the money and shoved it in his pocket. "Ah yes. You're right. I'm sorry." He said, "Follow me."

"Thank you so much." Dipper whispered to her as they followed the man to their table. "I owe you."

"That you do." She said and winked.

They were sat down in a thankfully more isolated are. On the way they passed a guy telling his girlfriend he was fired from his job as an ice cream truck man because three huge tubs of ice cream had inexplicably gone missing from his truck. The restaurant Dipper had chosen was a little more expensive than what he had hoped and called for more formal attire than what they dawned. He felt less embarrassed where less people could see him. The menu had a great selection of alcoholic beverages which had Dipper, Mabel, and Bill feeling nauseous only skimming through it in search of food to order. In the end, Dipper chose the triple fish, Bill took the Gainsbourg, Mabel ordered the mussels and fries, and Pacifica got the veggie wrap.

"I guess I ran out of time for that hot summer romance I wanted, hun?" Mabel said.

"There's still a week left to August." Pacifica said and nudged her, "It's not over yet."

"I think it is." She said and then she took her girlfriend's hand and held it tightly, "But we can always try again next summer."

Pacifica smiled from ear to ear.

"Oh my god," Bill groaned, "Are you two going to keep being this lovey-dovey?" He glanced at Dipper, "This wears off, right?"

"Hey! You were just as bad as us when you started dating Dipper!" Mabel countered.

"I was not!" The demon denied.

"Please! You should have seen yourself!" Mabel grinned, "You tried killing a guy because Dipper was flirting with him."

"I did not!" He continued to deny, "Who told you that!?"

"I did." Dipper said.

"Traitor!"

"And so my point stands!" Mabel claimed proudly.

"Attempted murder is not the same thing as what you two are doing." Bill argued. "You two keep smiling and giggling and giving each other doe-eyed looks. You need to calm down."

" _We_ need to calm down?" Pacifica smirked, "Says the demon who spends more time begging for sex than not."

"Do not!" Bill snapped and glanced at Dipper who looked away guiltily. "I do not!"

"Dipper over here has another story he would like to tell." Pacifica chuckled.

"Could you maybe not drag me into this?" Dipper asked.

"Do you tell them everything?" Bill glared.

"I mean…I talk to Mabel sometimes…" Dipper admitted loosely.

"And I tell Pacifica." Mabel grinned, "The bonds of matrimony demand it!"

"You're not even married." Bill said, "You just started dating _yesterday_."

"Don't get mad, Bill…" Dipper sighed but the demon was up and out of his chair shortly. "Bill…" he called as the other left the table.

"Did we go too far?" Pacifica asked.

"No, he's just being a baby." Dipper sighed, "I'll go talk to him. You two just keep eating and whatever."

Dipper chased his lover to the bathroom at the other end of the restaurant. He sighed deeply before pushing through the batting door and walking in. Another guy walked out at the same time, vacating the bathroom of any other strangers. Dipper reached back to lock the door so as not to be interrupted by strangers wanting to take a piss, but didn't bother to look to make sure he had done so successfully.

"Bill…" he tried again, "Bill, they were joking. Don't take it so hard."

The blond suddenly turned around and flung his arms around Dipper's neck. He pulled him into a kiss, crashing their lips together. It was unexpected but Dipper's body responded like it hadn't been surprised. Moving his lips smoothly and slipping his tongue inside Bill's mouth when the latter's parted just for him. The brunet's hands fell down to his waist and slipped to his butt, unable to resist grabbing it. It pulled a squeak from Bill's lips and his smile widened as he pulled away from their heated kiss.

"I want to take it _very_ hard." He purred.

"What…what's gotten into you…?" Dipper asked nervously. He wasn't sure he wanted to have sex in a semi-formal restaurant and in a bathroom no less. People might start knocking at the door impatiently before they got even remotely close to finishing up.

"Well, they got me thinking," Bill said and pressed his body flush against Dipper's, "We haven't had sex in a while."

"Hasn't it only been, like, two days?" Dipper asked. It hadn't been _that_ long.

"I don't care, I'm horny." The demon stated. "Now we can't go back to the car because people will walk past and see us and that bothers you so this is best option."

"Can't you wait…?" Dipper asked, he bit his lower lip in an effort to ignore his own building arousal. "I mean…people will…they'll get mad…"

"Did you lock the door?" Bill asked.

"Yes." Dipper answered.

"Then fuck me good and hard right now." He demanded, "The sooner we're done, the faster we can leave this place before the other men get angry."

"But…in the bathroom?" Dipper asked, "That's…that's so sloppy."

"I don't care." Bill insisted and he pressed their lips together before Dipper could continue objecting.

He pushed him back against the sink and counters at the other end of the room. They stopped there for a moment, kissing until Dipper finally resolved himself to take his proactive role regardless of his thoughts on the location Bill had chosen. They _had_ done worse before.

He guided Bill to the biggest stall and didn't bother to close or lock its door. He had locked the bathroom's main door – or, he was pretty sure he had – so doing so again became redundant. The brunet thought about guiding them to the toilet, pushing down the lid and using the porcelain object as a seat. However, his minor germaphobia got the better of him and he decided they might as well just use the wall.

"God damn it you make me do terrible things." Dipper breathed as he pressed Bill against the wall.

"You love it." He grinned and they locked lips again.

They kissed a moment longer until Dipper abruptly tore away. He flipped the blonde, pushing his torso against the wall and pulling out his hips and ass with his other hand. Bill glanced over his shoulder and sent him a pretty smile that complimented his blush. Dipper reached around his waist and undid the demon's pants, pulling them down just enough to expose his ass and free his building erection. They weren't about to strip out of their clothes – Lord knew what the gunk on the floor was and they had to be quick.

Dipper spat on his fingers, coating them with his saliva as best as he could before bringing the first digit to Bill's ass. The demon bit his lip and wiggled his hips, pushing back against the teasing finger. He sucked in a sharp breath when Dipper pushed pass the tight ring of muscles and began thrusting his finger in, easing it steadily deeper every time. Small mewls began escaping the blonde's lips and he eagerly moved his hips so as to meet the movements of Dipper's first digit. The way he moved was intoxicating and arousing. It consumed Dipper with dirty thoughts and he knew that at that point, nothing would get him to leave the bathroom without having fucked Bill first.

He eased in his second finger soon after. Reaching deeper, faster now that the demon wasn't as tense and stiff. He spat on his finger a few more times to increase their sad excuse for lubricant and tried to finish stretching Bill as quickly as could all the while still doing a good job. Sure the demon didn't mind pain, rather he enjoyed it, but Dipper wasn't a fan of hurting his lover whether the latter wanted it or not. He spread the two fingers he already had inside Bill's ass as he continued thrusting, readying him to take his third finger shortly after.

Bill was moaning desperately by the time Dipper finally added the last digit. He gripped the wall hopelessly, leaving faint scratch marks that would surely embarrass the brunet when they finished. "Please…" he begged, "Come on, Pine Tree, just do it…"

"Hang on…" he breathed.

Dipper stretched him just a tad longer, adding more saliva to lubricate as much as possible before finally pulling out. He fiddled with his pants quickly, pulling out his cock and wasted no time pushing it in Bill. In the moment where they became one, the demon released a beautiful cry that sent shivers through Dipper. Nothing else mattered anymore. He could only hear the sounds Bill made, feel his warmth envelop him in bliss rather than the bathroom door creaking open and the set of curious eyes resting upon his back.

He fucked Bill mindlessly. His only goal was to finish as soon as possible so they could get out and go back to the table. And yet, Dipper didn't want the moment to end. There was nothing he loved more than having sex with Bill because not only was it pleasurable, but it was the most intimate act they could ever do together. It was more than sex, it was making love – even if the environment in which they performed the act left quite a bit to desire.

And suddenly, Dipper began to feel his climax approach. As thankful as he was that everything would soon be over and they could return to their table to finish their meal, he wasn't about to be the first to cum. He reached around and took a hold of Bill's leaking prick, pumping it in time with his thrusts. Bill threw his head back and cried out, clawing the wall as he bucked his hips, helpless to the overwhelming ecstasy. He chanted Dipper's name like it was the only word he knew until he finally came, his cum painting the barren wall on which he pressed his upper body so as to hold himself up. Dipper came literal seconds after, the spontaneous tightness milking him for all he was worth with a single cry.

They stayed entwined, pressed together against the wall as they caught their breaths. And then Dipper froze. His heart stopped, his entire body stiffened, and the only thing he could think was: "dear god no."

"Oh my God, are they done?" A frat boy asked and he sounded far too close.

"I think they are." Another said and whooped, "Let's hear it for the horny couple in the handicap stall!"

A literal crowd cheered behind them and Dipper begged for the ground to swallow him whole and for a God – any God – to smite him where he stood. He felt more than embarrassment – it was utter and complete mortification. He wasted no time in pulling away from Bill, blushing violently upon seeing just how many people had been watching him have sex in a _fucking_ bathroom stall. He tucked himself away hastily whereas Bill took his time, enjoying the attention far too much. He even grinned and winked at a few people whose gazes lingered on him in a lustful way. Dipper was too humiliated to feel angry.

"They're queer and they're here, ladies and gentlemen!" One of the men yelled and laughed, "Mostly gentlemen!"

"I can't believe this." Another guy said and this one sounded affronted, "How dare any of you cheer for public indecency."

"What? Are you homophobic or something?" One of the men who clearly hadn't heard what the former had said accused.

"What they did was beautiful and natural!" Another yelled, "How about you go fuck yourself with your Bible, hun?"

"That's not what I said—!" But a fight quickly broke out and it was the perfect cover for Dipper to drag Bill away. They squeezed out of the suddenly very crowded bathroom and ran through the restaurant and back to the table. There was no way he could finish his meal now. Sooner or later, the brawl in the bathroom would finish, the men would leave, and they would holler at Dipper and Bill when they caught sight of them. The brunet was mortified enough as it was, they needed to leave now but he couldn't wait for the check.

It was time to cross another thing from his bucket list.

"What took you guys so long?" Pacifica smirked, she was about to make a joke but Dipper interrupted her before she could.

"Grab your shit. Now." He said hurriedly, holding Bill's hand tightly.

"What? Why?" Mabel asked but she and Pacifica still did as they were told.

"We need to leave, like, right now." Dipper said and then he leaned closer, "Dine and dash."

"Hun?"

"I'm am literally going to leave the two of you behind if you don't keep up." Dipper declared before he dragged Bill behind him and ran out of the restaurant.

Most of the employees had gone to the bathroom to deal with the fight that had erupted. One woman in heels stayed at the entrance however, with a bored expression on her face. She jolted in surprise as the group ran past her and yelled at them things neither of them grasped in their rush to leave. They jumped in the car and Dipper hardly waited for anyone to buckle up before he turned on his car and pressed the gas pedal as far as it could go. They barrelled down the street, burning more red lights than they should have been able to without causing an accident. In mere minutes they were rushing down the highway and, for some unexplained reason, no cops were after them.

Yet.

"What the hell was all that about!?" Pacifica barked from the back seat.

Dipper slowly released his hold on the gas pedal and fell into a much more legal speed. He released and heavy and shaky breath and then glanced at Bill. The demon bore a smile stretching from ear to ear and upon eye contact, neither could contain the laughs that spilled from their mouths. They wheezed and cried from laughing so hard and it took them a few long minutes before they calmed down enough to speak coherently.

"Oh my god, oh my god, _oh my god_!" Dipper cried, a smile plastered on his face regardless of the humiliation he still felt in regards to what had so recently happened. "As _if_ that happened!"

"I don't understand how we didn't notice." Bill agreed with a brief nod.

"What happened?" Mabel asked.

They glanced at each other again before telling them.

"No way." Pacifica smirked, "So we just dine and dashed – something that's very illegal, by the way – and drag raced out of Newport because you two built a crowd while having sex in the restaurant bathroom?"

"Pretty much." Dipper said.

"I liked the attention I was getting." Bill claimed, "Pine Tree's just such a prude."

"Right. Prude." The brunet snorted.

"See what I was saying about you being a sort of sex addict?" Pacifica teased.

"Guilty as charged." Bill said, raising his hands in defeat.

"Not to be a Debby downer," Mabel said, "But people were probably recording you two on their phones…"

"I'll take care of it." Bill said, "I'll get sick again but it's not that big of a deal."

"This vacation was wild from start to finish." Mabel huffed and leaned back into her seat.

"That was a really special date, Pine Tree." Bill said, "Let's do it again some time."

"How about no." Dipper said, but he smiled and took a hand off the steering wheel to hold Bill's.

Mabel smiled as she watched their hands clasp together and she, herself, reached for Pacifica. She glanced over at the blonde and grinned. Pacifica mirrored her smile and then closed the gap between them with their very first kiss. It was short and sweet, very gentle and perfect in every single way. Mabel still wasn't accustomed to the whole dating a girl thing, but she was sure she could get used to it with small, lovely contacts like that. She unbuckled her seat belt and moved to the middle seat so as to lean on Pacifica as they commenced the long drive home.

"Hey guys." Dipper said, "Let's never go back to Newport."


End file.
